Castagna Restaurant
1752 SE Hawthrone & 18th • 503.231.7373 • CastagnaRestaurant.com
Hours: Wednesday – Saturday 5:30pm – Close
Portland is at it again! Local restaurant Castagna was featured in a recent article in the Wall Street Journal. It is keeping my definite case of hometown pride alive. 
Pumpkin, Chocolate, Walnut Praline and Tonka Bean dessert from Castagna
Need to get your calcium in for the day? Why bother with just a glass of milk or an even more boring calcium supplement, when you can have it as a delicious dessert?
The WSJ article listed several places around the country doing just that with the dairy beverage. Pastry chefs nationwide are indulging in milk-featured desserts. From the unusual “cereal-encrusted fried-milk dessert” at Uchiko in Austin and Uchi in Houston to the more traditional Peanut Muscovado Milk drink at State Bird Provisions in San Francisco. It is an incredible shot of milk, cream, peanuts, vanilla bean and Muscovado sugar (a raw dark brown sugar). Now that’s how to do a shot!
Peanut Muscovado Milk – Photo courtesy of Wall Street Journal
At Portland’s Castagna, they have created a decadent Chamomile Custard, complete with flower petals, pollen and tea sorbet. To make this beautiful treat, Executive Chef Justin Woodward “freezes milk, dried chamomile and cocoa butter and pulverizes the mixture to a granular, pollen-like texture that he dusts on the petals of edible flowers.”
When I recently visited Castagna, I also tried their Pumpkin, Chocolate, Walnut Praline and Tonka Bean dessert. While it wasn’t as pumpkin-y as I like (and yes, I’m typically into the overwhelming amount of pumpkin), it was a fantastic ending to a great meal. Similar to the Chamomile Custard and all the other Castagna dishes, it was gorgeously presented. The warm, dark chocolate was encassed in a light, slightly sweet chocolate meringue. Similar to a creme brulee, it was delightfully fun breaking into the meringue and delicious to indulge in its variety of textures. It was perfectly juxtaposed with the creamy tonka bean ice cream (which is similar to vanilla bean).
With desserts like these, it is no wonder that Castagna has been getting national press!
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