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Young & HungryIf you can't take the heat, get outta the kitchen! |
| 3 March |
I actually made these while I was experimenting for the Master Chef casting call. They seemed a unique combination of sauces and flavors and they are! Alas, my taste test panel concluded that they are better warm so they didn’t make the cut. Speaking of making the cut, I’m pretty sure I, like the mushrooms, did not make the cut. While I haven’t gotten the “we didn’t choose you for Master Chef, but come try out for our new Biggest Loser Bride” rejection email I also haven’t received any positive feedback or inquiries into the cavernous depths of my past which is rumored to be part of the background check. Wasn’t a 12 page application enough?!
I’m going to chalk it up to just not meant to be, this year anyway. I at least got to try some good recipes and meet some interesting people! With the Academy Awards coming up this weekend, this recipe would make a great pre-show nibble and it’s just as fancy as all the glowing movie stars that will be in attendance. We don’t all end up on the big (or small) screen, but that doesn’t mean we can’t still enjoy those who do. Life outside of the spotlight can be just as fabulous and that’s just how I intend mine to be!
| 3 February |
Just when I had come to terms with the fact that I was not getting a callback, there it came! A call from an unknown number in LA mid-wine tasting. On a side note, I would like to give kudos to the Tasting Room in Sandy Springs for hosting one of the best and most informative wine tastings I’ve ever attended. Back to the phone call. Not having yet realized the importance of the mysterious number in my call log, I thoughtlessly dialed voice mail while perusing the isles of the wine shop next door with my girl friends. Stop. Drop. Squeal! They called and are wondering if I’m still interested! Duh, of course I am. Roll camera!
It all started with leftover nuts. Hazelnuts, to be exact. I have quite an assortment of nuts lingering in my pantry from Christmas just begging to live up to their full potential. Who am I to deny a lonely hazelnut their proper fate? And so I thought, hazelnuts and…..orange….and….fish! Yes it sounds like a bizarre combination, but upon my required due diligence I found that many a chef has gone there before. And so I had my main course, orange scented hazelnut encrusted halibut or err…salmon. With sides still TBD, I kept thinking until I came up with a more complimentary rendition on a braised fennel I learned in a cooking class in Italy and, last but not least, the curious potato risotto from this month’s Bon Appétit!
| 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!
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