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Young & HungryIf you can't take the heat, get outta the kitchen! |
| 20 January |
The forwarded email casually suggested I might be interested. My IMMEDIATE response screamed “Yes, please!” And thank you for the information, of course. So began our investigation into what will soon be the American Idol of cooking shows. Master Chef is a new series modeled after the shows now airing in Australia and London. The Fox series, however, will star Gordon Ramsey and contain local talent which they’ve spent the last month scouring the US to find. Obviously, Katy attended the casting call in Dallas and I attended in Atlanta. Hopefully it’s not so obvious that neither of us have received a call back, but I’m hoping that’s just because they have not yet realized what fabulous television the two of us dueling it out in the kitchen would make…Alas, after completing a 12 page application and a lot of planning, experimenting, and waiting we have heard nothing. Not that the experience itself wasn’t totally worthwhile. I can say that because I made my way through the doors 2 hours later and right before the sky opened up in a not so nice wintry rain. Those merely arriving on-time were not so lucky, yet I concede that anything done while holding a fresh & hand delivered Starbuck’s Misto is not completely intolerable. In line I heard stories of casting calls past, favorite restaurants, and meals, soon to be plated and presented to the judges. Once we entered the Viking School all chatter was silenced by nerves until we were ushered into a station to plate and present. Honestly, I fumbled, jittery from the cold and coffee. I managed to get my stuffed squid to look appealing enough, however, raised my hand, and did my best to woo the Casting Director and Fox Newscaster who would determine my fate. Although I failed to notice, I was told the cameras were on me during my interview so if nothing else perhaps I’ll at least make the first episode! And, of course, this original dish for you!
| 2 November |
I imagine it’s not too common for someone to be inspired to plan an entire meal around something like radicchio, but thanks to Michael Chiarello that’s exactly what I did. This episode of his show on grilling was nothing out of the ordinary, but the idea of taking a boring leaf vegetable and putting it through marinade, direct heat, and a good stuffing is just plain inspirational. For those that don’t know, radicchio is that bitter red “green” aka chicory that you usually pick out of your salad! This recipe, however, transforms it into a charred veggie quesadilla-esque masterpiece. The cheese melts gluing the leaves of the lettuce together into a sandwich of sorts while the marinade helps hide the bitterness that is also reduced through a nice long ice bath. The juicy radicchio serves as the perfect counterpart to the oh too usual dry and overcooked pork, unless you too like risking salmonella in avoidance.
As far as your starch for the meal is concerned, couscous went well and put to good use the leftover marinade from the radicchio. Michael seems to take a heavy hand to the marinade; I found that half was more than sufficient. If couscous isn’t your thing, I might do something simple like mashed or baked potatoes especially now that summer has come and gone and the colorful heirloom tomatoes have disappeared from the stores and markets.
| 8 October |
What’s not to love about the fluffy doughy deliciousness that is focaccia bread. Even in its purest state, seasoned simply with herbs and a drizzle of olive oil it leaves nothing to be desired. Kicked up a notch, baked with sun-dried tomatoes or olives for example, leaves even less to be desired and enables one to take a little creative spin on this classic Italian bread. There’s nothing I like more than a twist on a classic, so when I found this recipe for “focaccia” that’s not merely topped but stuffed I just about had a conniption. I was, in fact, so excited that I made it the very next night.
Now for the disclaimer. I’m not sure if I failed at this recipe as there was no picture to validate my results, but it does not result in the aforementioned fluffy doughy bread to which you and I have become accustomed. It is not dimpled with oil wells and charred herbs. It is more dense than airy and thus not quite suitable for soaking and dipping. Disclaimer aside, this so called “focaccia” is quite delicious! It makes for a great appetizer, is a clean cut finger food, and complimented my Cuban Chicken Fricase quite nicely. Yes I mixed genres, but the two recipes shared just enough ingredients to make it work.
| 2 September |
Now as my Mother will verify, I am no good when it comes to writing recipes. I don’t measure, I substitute ingredients and then I wait days or weeks before even attempting to log my actions which inevitably means that I don’t remember what they were in the first place. Perhaps I am a distant relative of the Cuban that regurgitated this recipe onto the back of a receipt for us, simply listing the components, circling a handful and then mentioning in a legend that those few should be sautéed for 15-20 minutes. What about the other 10 ingredients? Where do they go? Are they optional? Chopped liver? Alas, I think this might be my favorite recipe ever. Lacking all the basic components that recipes usually contain, steps, measurements, temperatures, etcetera, really leaves room for creative license. So in trying to recreate this unbelievably tender and flavorful dish from one of our favorite downtown Honolulu lunch spots, we improvised. And you know what? It was pretty darn close to perfect.
So Mom, looks like recipes can be merely suggestions to guide your kitchen experiments. And, no, I did not measure any of these ingredients in the act, but, after some research, I am pretty sure that this will yield similar results. If you are like me and prefer to use my recipe as a template for your own creation, other common ingredients include potatoes, peas and carrots and a number of recipes call for red wine instead of white. Additionally, the majority of Fricases out there do not contain nearly as many spices so do not make haste in the opposite direction if you’re missing one or two. Taste and change as you go and definitely feel free to send modifications!
| 23 August |
For those of you that live alone, skip to the recipe or, if you’re lonely, keep reading with a reminiscent heart. Now, to the readers who cohabitate, let us reflect on all the lessons learned from roommates past. There was my first roommate from West Virginia who taught me that most of the rumors about people from West Virginia are not in fact true, most. She also tried to teach me how to shotgun a beer in our freshman hall’s bathroom to no avail. My next roommate taught me a lot about boys, you could call her a boy magnet of sorts. She had flirting and the fine art of dating down to a T, ahh that was a fun year. Next I went through an assortment of roommates traveling abroad to Florence and west to UCLA. They taught me a myriad of things from the greatness of In-N- Out to how to appreciate a fine wine. I learned to recognize cheeses even though they mostly look and feel the same, that the only thing Italy got wrong was that they forgot to put the gelato between two freshly baked Diddy Riese cookies, and to appreciate tofu – the other white meat? Finally, they reminded me how to swim laps to work up an appetite for aforementioned good eats, particularly during water polo practice.
My current roomie has followed suit bringing an entirely new set of lessons to the table, my favorite of which are probably from her Mom’s organic garden which turns out by far the best tomatoes and blueberries I’ve ever had. When she’s not feeding me my veggies, however, we take delight in our love of mayonnaise and late night pizza. Not at the same time of course, usually. She also has taught me that impromptu infomercial purchases can, in time, earn their keep. And so, we were happy when we were able to use both the Chop Wizard and the mass quantity of mayo in our kitchen for this recipe. The ShamWow, however, I fear will never see the light outside our laundry room… Here’s to a Snuggie come Christmas.
| 10 August |
Imagine my giddy delight at the absolutely gigantic globe artichokes I found at my local Central Market. Such marvels deserve nothing but the royal treatment and I therefore chose the road less taken (though the road that should be taken more given the spectacular result) which, in this case, was grilling.Summer Lovin'!
I prepared the artichokes by paring down the stems to remove the tough, fibrous outer layer and cutting off the top third of the choke, exposing the delicate matrix of leaves inside. Each artichoke was wrapped tightly in foil and I placed the silver orbs on indirect heat on the grill, turning occasionally, for about 20 minutes until slightly charred and tender. The grill lent a subtle smoky flavor which paired beautifully with the melted butter and lemon with which I served them. Extremely simple—and an extraordinarily delicious result, proving that sometimes the best dishes are those most elemental.
| 3 August |
Wherefore art my beloved pan?
Sleeping soundly in my kitchen
In the dark cabinet it’s hidden
Hiding from the light of day
It is safely tucked away
Waiting just to see the light
And satiate my appetite
What fine feast will be up next
Perhaps the tuna it likes best?
Take me out you silly girl
Trash the fried food lest I hurl
Why go into the light of day
Forced to chased the bugs away
When you have me to grill you right
Satiate that lusty appetite
All you need is some meat
To whip up a tasty treat
Or some veggies from the market
Will complete your evening banquet
You save me from mosquito bites
When favoring some lite delights
Alas there is some use for man
To flip and baste while I do tan
Prepare for you something I will
As long as your masculine duties fulfilled
My skills were honed on the island
Where the grill was fully manned
But now an army I have none
And so the battle’s to be won
Yes I’ve seen you try to ignite
That flame which burns in you so bright
But fire lady… stay away
You’ve yet to see another day
Stick with me I’ll treat you well
Soon you’ll hear that dinner bell
Ring with opportunity
Here to feed you so hungry
And for the night now you are free
To try a dessert recipe
Square or round we care not
This grill pan will not be forgot
For forever we will be
Cooking in perfect harmonyTo bring these recipes to you
Dear reader something fresh and new
Winter spring or chilly fall
The weather no need mind at all
For you now can feel the thrill
Charred nothings from your Calphalon grill!
| 7 July |
Ok, perhaps not the best title I’ve ever concocted, but considering it’s occasion appropriate I think it could be worse. I debated using this post to discuss the fabulous Piedmont Farmer’s market that I try to frequent each Saturday in the park, but I feel like I’ll go ahead and save that theme for some wonderful vegetarian side such as yellow zucchini or heirloom tomatoes. That said, this recipe does provide you with a fab sauce for any heirloom tomatoes you might have looming around your kitchen. This recipe also provides you with a venue to dispose of that delectable fresh goat cheese you might have picked up if you went to said market. When I say that this goat cheese was worth getting up for after a mere 4 hours of sleep I do not exaggerate. When I say that it is worth walking 3 miles dehydrated, in 90 degree weather and Rainbow flip flops that you soon learn have not been broken in I also do not exaggerate. And so, since this market trip was more on a “why am I awake” whim, I will save my usual delightful “here I go a marketing…” narrative for a later date.
I made this recipe for my Dad who I’ve said before is a lover of all things cilantro-fied. While he neglected to pick out one of the many recipes I sent him to choose from for his annual Father’s Day dinner, judging by the sparse leftovers I’m pretty certain he loved what he got!
| 4 June |
Ah, summer. Just upon the horizon and filling my farmer’s market with its luscious bounty already. This dish is one that I made up, inspired by my muse of late, the king of summer grilling Bobby Flay. I’ve always loved, loved grilled corn, especially when utilizing the locally grown ears I would get in Upstate New York, with their neat rows of crisp kernels bursting with sweet milk. My thoughts on corn are as follows:
The secret to good corn, in my opinion, is to never overcook it, particularly if your method of cooking is boiling (for grilling, it’s ok to overcook because the kernels gain more charred flavor the longer they sit on the grill.) Most people boil their corn to death, resulting in bland and rubbery ears. If boiling, ears should be submerged for maybe two minutes, three max. In and out and into the mouth, yum!
The secret to good corn, in my opinion, is to never overcook it, particularly if your method of cooking is boiling (for grilling, it’s ok to overcook because the kernels gain more charred flavor the longer they sit on the grill.) Most people boil their corn to death, resulting in bland and rubbery ears. If boiling, ears should be submerged for maybe two minutes, three max. In and out and into the mouth, yum!
But seriously, how good does that look?
Believe it or not, microwaving corn yields a great result, though again, it cannot be overdone. Wrap ears tightly in plastic wrap and zap them for 1-2 minutes or just until sizzling.
Corn is so delicious raw and yet people shy away from it. Slice it off the ear and toss into a salad, in a salsa, or in a sandwich…absolutely wonderful.
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