Restaurant Review | Mellow Mushroom

I hope that everyone had as wonderful of a 3-day weekend as I did and thank you for staying patient while I took Martin Luther King Jr. day off from both work and blogging - a girl needs her rest!

This is an easy post as I'm still in a bit of a food coma while I write this  so pardon me if I trail off mid-sentence with a drool streak.

For a MLK + Inauguration day celebrations Dan and I were invited by our good friends Brooke and Brad to visit Mellow Mushroom for an all-out lunch and day drinking extravaganza.  We had visited previously the restaurant for both a friend's birthday and for pre-New Years Eve dinner plans and can say that it's one of our favorite pizza locations in Portland. We haven't yet been disappointed and have barely covered all of the incredible options on the menu.

They are predominantly located in Southeastern states with a few locations moving West... and only one location in Oregon that we are lucky enough to have only a few minutes drive from home and work.

What's even greater about Mellow Mushroom is that on Monday's they have an All Day special where any of their beers originally priced $5.50 and under per pint (as long as its under 8% abv) are only $2.00. This isn't just a deal for the light beers and canned varieties - it's for well crafted, top quality, local and domestic micro brews. You could go there every day for a week and not order the same thing twice. <-- That is a challenge.

(via)

What We Ate:

1 Medium House Special Pizza ($20.00)

Red sauce base with mozzarella cheese, pepperoni, sausage, ground beef, ham, Applewood smoked bacon, mushrooms, black olives, Roma tomatoes, green peppers and onions. Topped with extra mozzarella.

[Previously we've eaten the Philosopher's Pie -

Olive oil and garlic base, all natural grilled steak, Portobello mushrooms, artichoke hearts, Kalamata olives, Provolone, feta and mozzarella cheeses.]

What We Drank:

Beers on beers on beers. I had three (Rogue Hazelnut Brown Nectar, Goose Island 312, Vertigo Raspberry Wheat) and Dan had four dark stout varieties that met his requirements for a good drink.

In addition, we all had a round of Irish Car bombs that sealed the deal on our day drinking. Martin wouldn't have wanted it any other way.

Know Before You Go:

• Oh what - a Beer Club? In case you plan to try new beers and earn points for them.


• Remember that Monday night happy hour ^^ it's important when you're planning your nights out.


• They’re Social – Check out their Facebook or Twitter
  


• Address: 1411 NW Flanders St Portland, OR 97209


• Hours: All days 11am-10pm // Friday & Saturday open until 11pm.
  


• View their drool-worthy Menu here
  

I'm going to have to take my parents here, I have a feeling that my dad would find a few pizzas on the menu irresistible!

<3 JE

The Best Weekends

Why is it that the best weekends go by so quickly?

If you remember from Friday's Post I was looking forward to a pretty special weekend. It exceeded my expectations!

Saturday morning I got home before 9am which gave mom and I time to go shopping for an adopted thanksgiving family while super-dad took my car to the DEQ.

After trying to contain our excitement, we briskly drove to PDX to rescue Matt after his long travels from Luxembourg.

Bailey was beside herself when that guy that she always sees on the computer screen hopped into the car. She instantly had Matt covered in hair and sloppy kisses that she'd been saving since she last saw him in March.

^ Such a happy girl ^

On the immediate schedule was one of Matt's favorite Portland restaurants: Fire on The Mountain where we enjoyed wings, sandwiches, salads and by Matt's request, Cajun tots!

When we got home Bailey ripped around the house with Matt and tired him herself out!

The rest of Saturday we watched a huge college football upset and our Blazers lose in late minutes at home. Matt snoozed early as he couldn't keep his eyes open a minute longer.

I seem to only have foodie photos from Sunday (yum) so you'll have to trust me that the house was full of excitement with Dan over to meet Matt for the first time and join us for breakfast and a day of NFL.

^ Pepper Bacon ^

^ Garlic Sausage and Sundried Tomato Sausage from Trader Joe's ^

^ Yummy scramble ^

^ Pumpkin Pancakes - Trader Joe's ^

After a long afternoon of NFL and family + Dan time, Matt recommended that we get a Flying Pie Pizza for dinner.

We ordered their XL Combo 2 complete with Pepperoni, salami, mushrooms, onions, black olives, & Italian sausage. Not a single piece was left over after the boys had their portions and mom and I supplemented our slice with a salad.

^ Portland visit staple ^

^ Matt vs Pizza ^

To heal Dan's suppressed woes over the Bears game, we each enjoyed Bailey's and milk on the rocks with whipped cream. A sign of the holidays!

I was thrilled to get in two workouts with the food and family - but I have some serious work to do today with a lunchtime run and an evening Nike Training Club session on the schedule!

<3 JE

Homemade Pizza

On my weekend visit to Trader Joe's I saw an old favorite in another shopper's cart and felt inspired to follow in suit. Trader Joe's has a Whole Wheat Pizza Dough that practically makes itself! I had most of the essentials at home already that I would use to build a fresh and healthy meal, but on an impulse I opted for the shredded pepperjack cheese over the usual mozzarella from home. It's the little things!

Here's the method I used to build my own pie:

Unwrap the pizza dough and let it rest for 20 minutes on a floured surface where you plan to roll it into your pizza.

Set your oven to 375 degrees

Once the dough has rested, start to mold it into  your desired shape either with your hands or a rolling pin. Once you're satisfied, prep your baking pan with 1 TBSP olive oil and transfer the pizza onto it.

Now that you have a sturdy base, spread the pizza sauce evenly over the surface of the dough. You may not need to use the entire jar of pizza sauce depending on the surface area of your pie.

Sprinkle shredded cheese over the sauce, covering evenly.

Add the pre-cooked chicken, chopped mushrooms and chopped olives in even distribution across the pizza so that every slice has the mixture.

Add the cilantro to the top and finish with a coating of pepperjack cheese and your favorite seasoning!

Carefully place in your oven for 14 minutes at 375 degrees and monitor between the 10-12 minute mark for melted cheese, golden brown crust and the distinctive aroma of accomplishment.

Pull the tray out of the oven with oven mitts, hand towels, whatever you've got! Mine was heavy!



Take Photos while you're cooling it off, posting to instagram, twitter and facebook. (In my case I also sent it to Dan to maybe make him miss me even more)



Slice, share and enjoy!



Mom, Dad and Bailey all got some too - I can't finish it all on my own! Thanks, team!

Recipe:

1 Package Trader Joe's Whole Wheat Pizza Dough

1 jar Trader Joe's Pizza Sauce

1 1/2 cups Shredded Trader Joe's pepperjack cheese

1 Chicken Breast - pre-cooked

3 large white mushrooms - chopped

1/2 can of medium olives - chopped

1/4 cup cilantro - chopped

1 TBSP Olive Oil

Flour to roll pizza dough

<3 JE