Tuesday, May 31, 2011

Two Day Feast

Just had the best Memorial Day feasts..Yes more than one, that you can imagine. My sister posted up on day one ‘Sunday’. We had the most awesome BBQ baby back ribs. I ate over half a rack when my belly said stop, but my taste buds said, “I want more.” There was corn on the cob that was very good for this time of the year. My sister is the baked beans master. Whatever she does they are always good, but this time they where over the top good. Ironically the usually overlooked, overly mayonnaise pasta salad was fucking kick ass. I couldn’t get enough. I think that is what filled me up so much. Damn good job.

Monday was my day! I just didn’t have the heart to compete. I was beat by the ribs, beans, pasta salad combo. I just had to keep up. I went to bat with a soy-garlic beef tips, grilled corn on the cob, baked potato, and I just couldn’t get enough of yesterday’s pasta salad so we had that again. I love a good baked potato. I especially like when they have a nice crunchy skin which can’t be accomplished in the microwave, but baking the thing in the oven when it’s 90 awful degrees outside is unrealistic. A few minutes in the magic box then a few on the grill suffice. I also put the grill to the corn so it was a little different. I swear there is a one square inch spot on this grill that is hotter than a Janet Jackson ‘wardrobe malfunction’, so a few tips got a little ‘crispy’ aka dog treats. See even the dogs had a great week-end feast.

Drinks where flowing too! Bet your ass. We had a nice combo of cheap vodka, Four Louko, cherry rum, muscato, ales, porters, and IPAs along with a little water, ice tea and lemonade. Plus we ate ¾ of a huge watermelon, which counts as a drink to me as it’s about 90% water.

Hope your week-end went as well. But last but most important thanks to those of service, and their families who spent the week-end wanting their loved ones closer to home.

Sunday, May 22, 2011

A leap toward sweets

I've undertaken the job of creating some unique desserts. I have a great number of ideas, but execution is my issue as following precise instructions is something that comes a bit troublesome to most hot side line cooks one of which I am.

My first attempt this time around was:

Pomegranate Pound Cake topped with Jim Beam Red Stag soaked berries, and vanilla ice cream.

Went over somewhat well.

My next attempt is going to be:

Blueberry claffoutie, gingersnaps, lime whipped cream.

We will have to give it a day or two to see what happens?

Sunday, May 15, 2011

Silliness

It is with the saddest heart that I pass on the following. Please join me in remembering a great icon. The Pillsbury Doughboy died yesterday of a yeast infection andcomplications from repeated pokes in the belly. He was 71.

Doughboy was buried in a lightly-greased coffin. Dozens of celebritiesturned out to pay their respects, including Mrs. Butterworth, HungryJack, the California Raisins, Betty Crocker, the Hostess Twinkies, andCap'n Crunch. The grave site was piled high with flours as long- timefriend, Aunt Jemima, delivered the eulogy, describing Doughboy as a manwho never knew how much he was kneaded. Doughboy rose quickly in showbusiness, but his later life was filled with turnovers. He was not considered a very "smart" cookie, wasting much of his dough on half-baked schemes.


Despite being a little flaky at times, he -- evenstill, as a crusty old man -- was considered a roll model for millions. Toward the end, it was thought he would rise again, but alas, he was notart.Doughboy is survived by his wife, Play Dough; two children, John Doughand Jane Dough; plus they had one in the oven. He is also survived byhis elderly father, Pop Tart. The funeral was held at 3:50 for about twenty minutes.

Sunday, May 01, 2011

Bourdain Book Review

I just finished Anthony Bourdain’s most recent book; Medium Raw. It was a very easy and interesting read. Having watched quite a few No Reservations episodes I found about a third of the book seemed quite familiar. Bourdain has a like him or hate him kind of persona. I’m still on the fence. Sure I’d like to have a beer with the guy, but likewise he seems like the kind of prick that would make me pay for it, along with the camera guy, sound guy, and whoever else. But that is also what there is to like about him, his opinions, and his writings…no reservations.

I skipped Bourdain’s Kitchen Confidential mostly because at that time when it was released I was very impressionable and it most likely would have shoved me into a twisted and evil attempt at mimicking his misadventures. Something I’m glad has passed. His Cooks Tour also was something I had little interest in, not that I wasn’t interested in that book per-se, but rather I was knee deep in Art Culaire and Food Arts. Why did I pick up Medium Raw? And why the fuck did I read the whole damn thing? It called out some big wigs, talked trash about other chefs, spoke to me as a wage earning grunt, and encouraged me in a very weird and twisted way that someday, maybe if something very strange and wonderful happened I might too be sipping Mai Tai’s in a hammock in Vietnam with a seemingly endless expenses account and a reputation that rivals Hunter S. Thompson….. Who’s paying for this hotel anyhow, Travel Channel or Rolling Stone?

For quite a few pages Bourdain calls out the Hero’s and Villains of the culinary world. Not only that but he explains his stance. Very ballsy, as expected for him, but to commit that to print that is just PUNK. There are almost as many pages attributed to disparaging his previous employer, the Food Network. How he explains this relationship might be the most objective part of the book. Admitting they went on to be successful (in a soulless money grabbing way) without him was somewhat refreshing. The most revealing insight in my opinion is that Bourdain considered his upbringing in the teenage years to be both the best parenting yet the eventual downfall of his character. Coming from a privileged house hold with caring parents who did their best for him it seemed all he wanted to do was fuck it up, and for some amount of time he did, but he came out the other end to brag to the rest of us about it

Tony’s got a soft side. You can tell about how he talks about his relationships, and most of all about his daughter. This is something a reader of only Kitchen Confidential wouldn’t really understand. Sex, drugs, rock & roll, and cooking can actually result in a good father. Whether you’re interested in children or not there is some inspiration there.

I’m really glad I bought this book. It was a very cool read. It was rather emotional as well. There were times I hated Bourdain, others when I loved him. I laughed a lot, cried a bit, but was mostly encouraged by the book. I would suggest it to anyone who cooks, anyone who read Kitchen Confidential, anyone who has ever watched No Reservations, or any foodie worth his/her CSA.