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Cooking For The Dogs – Part I

Technorati Tags: food memoir,foodoir

The moment I walked into the parlor of the cooking school; I felt at home in a place I had never been. Sitting behind a large mahogany desk, strewn with books and papers, was a large black man in a white Chef's coat with a snow-white beard and a shock of white hair accentuated by a widow's peak. He welcomed me with a Santa like twinkle in his eye and an enormous toothy grin. I gently grabbed the hand for a quick and polite shake. His hand crushed mine in return with an intense yet friendly power.

This very charismatic and unique man was John Snowden and I was in his cooking school for Francophiles or anyone else interested in food. He also ran a semi-legal catering business that specialized in home parties to the elite North Shore set of Chicago. I was there to talk about taking classes. I was twenty years old and at a point in my career where I wanted to stop working in pizza joints and get a job in a real restaurant. As we talked he discovered that I was very interested in making cooking a career. He asked if I had considered becoming a chef. I immediately said yes, not knowing at the time what that meant or even what the difference was between a chef and a cook. He took this affirmation as an opportunity to enter into a long dissertation on the life of a chef. He painted a colorful picture of the hard work, long hours, and often, poor working conditions. He also told stories of great dinner parties, cooking for royalty, being in charge of a battalion of cooks and other chefs. He also spoke of the great chefs in history, names I had never heard before, like Tallevant, Careme, Escoffier and Point. I had just come off a three-year crusade of partying and having as much fun as possible while personally trying to end the war in Vietnam through protests and speeches. I was hooked by his fables. I had never imagined the world of cooking and kitchens to be so full of traditions and artistic challenges. I was caught in the rapture of a world I never knew existed and found it very comfortable to be there.

He must have sensed this, because I barely said a word during his narrative. He ended his oration with an offer for me to become his apprentice. He explained how I would learn far more as his apprentice than I would by merely taking classes. Most of the class sessions were geared towards home cooks and the basics they needed to be able to cook like a Frenchman. If I were to become his apprentice, not only would I attend every one of these classes, but I would also take part in the advanced classes for people who wanted to learn specialty cooking like sauce making or pastry. And then there were his catering jobs. These were mostly grand dinner parties in private homes where we would prepare the classics of French cuisine. He explained that this education wouldn't cost me a dime. In return for this fabulous gift I would work for him by keeping the kitchen clean and help him prepare and serve food for parties. If I was up to the work, he guaranteed I would walk away from this experience with a knowledge of cooking that would let me into any kitchen anywhere in the world. Without the slightest trepidation I eagerly agreed and shook his powerful two and half fingered hand to seal the deal.

We talked for another hour, or should I say he talked, about what it was to be an apprentice. I had an idea what an apprentice was but knew very little about the details of this particular position. In order to set the tone for my education he described his own experience as an apprentice in France under the great Fernand Point of La Pyramide in Varenne.(The very same restaurant to train Paul Bocuse many years later.) Chef Snowden, though he insisted I call him John, had left his home at the tender age of fourteen and traveled to France to become an apprentice. He worked in the kitchens of La Pyramide for four years as an apprentice before leaving for his first job as a full-fledged cook. During his apprenticeship he was not allowed to touch food for the first year. He would clean the kitchen, the dining rooms, tend the garden and look after Madame Point's dogs. This should have sent a clear message to me about my near future. But, I was so enthralled with this man and his stories, he was so charming and charismatic, that I put my apprehensions aside and felt welcome in this New World I was about join.

Mom's Day Recipes...for the last minute guys

I know the fishing opener, baseball, the economy and hundreds other reasons probably got in the way...but you gotta do something for the missus or Mom tomorrow. There's no way out of it. So if you haven't made brunch recipes (and fat chance you'll find any now), or you want to save some change and do something at home. Here are some easy, and fancy, recipe that will make her think you scoured the food mags for weeks looking for just the right dish.

SAMBUCCA BROILED GRAPEFRUIT

Serves 8

4 large Pink Grapefruit

4 pinches Salt

1 tsp. Vanilla Extract

4 tsp. Sambucca Liqueur* (optional)

4 Tbsp. Brown Sugar

2 Tbsp. Unsalted Butter, cut into 8 thin slices

8 each Maraschino Cherries

Preheat the oven broiler to 500° F.

Cut the grapefruit into halves along the equator. Using a grapefruit knife (or any very sharp small knife), cut around the outside perimeter and all the sections (removing the core) to enable easy eating by your guests.

Place the prepared grapefruit halves onto a baking sheet with low sides. Cut a thin slice off the base of each one to make sure they all sit evenly.

Sprinkle the salt evenly on each grapefruit half. Pour the vanilla into a small glass and brush evenly over the grapefruit halves. Pour the Sambucca Liqueur over the grapefruit halves and then sprinkle the sugar over the grapefruit as evenly as possible. Dot with the butter.

Place the pan under the broiler and broil for 3 to 5 minutes, watching carefully.

Place a maraschino cherry into the core area of each half and serve immediately or at room temperature. These are also good as leftovers.

 

SWISS CHARD AND PROSCIUTTO BREAD PUDDING

Serves 8

12 slices Firm white bread, trimmed & cubed
2 cups Swiss Chard, chopped coarse and blanched
4 oz. Prosciutto ham, diced
2 cups Provolone, shredded

¼ cup Fresh Basil, shredded

¼ cup Italian flat parsley, chopped
6 large Eggs, slightly beaten
3 1/2 cups Milk
3/4 tsp. Kosher Salt
1/2 tsp. White Pepper

Bring 2 quarts of lightly salted water to a boil Add the Swiss chard. Return the pot to a boil and remove from the heat immediately. Drain the Swiss chard and cool immediately in a bowl of ice water. As soon as the chard, is cool, drain and squeeze dry.

Cover bottom of buttered 9 x 13 inch pan with 1/2 bread cubes. Layer Swiss chard, ham and cheese over bread. Top with half the herbs and remaining bread cubes. Combine eggs, milk, salt and pepper. Pour over bread pudding. Cover and refrigerate 2 hours or overnight. Bake at 350° until a knife comes out clean, 55 to 60 minutes. Let stand 10 minutes and cut into squares.

Download and Print Mom's Day Recipes

Fancy Charcoal Grilling and Smoking Recipes

CHARCOAL

The Old Days: Years ago, charcoal was prepared by placing pieces of wood piled on end in rows in a shape like a cone. This pile was then covered with dirt or moist ashes with holes left in the top for a chimney and at the bottom for air to enter. The wood was then allowed to burn very slowly. When completely burned, the holes were then covered and the pile of wood was allowed to cool. This method was not as effective as is today and only yielded about 20% pure charcoal.

Charcoal consists primarily of amorphous carbon and ash. This carbon consists of tiny, irregularly arranged particles of graphite, which is almost pure carbon. It also has some other impurities consisting of sulfur and hydrogen compounds. It is partially burned or charred wood thus the name charcoal.

Charcoal consists of carbon full of porous, or many tiny holes, which assist in complete and thorough burning of the substance.

Charcoal consists of wood which has been heated to high temperatures in ovens while restricting the available amount of air. If oxygen was available, the wood would naturally burn up and that would be the end of this story. But, such is not the case.

When the wood is heated, the wood chemically decomposes and releases gases and tars which are saved as by-products. The resulting product is charcoal which is almost a pure form of carbon. The charcoal when burned releases an even hot flame, no smoke and burns almost completely. The only residue is a little ash. No smoke. It takes approximately 4 pounds of wood to make a little more than 1 pound of charcoal.

So far, I have been talking about pure charcoal. Some of the more popular "charcoal" manufactures do not use exclusively charcoal. They blend their charcoal with by-products (which we will refer to as "extenders") thus extending the amount of appeared charcoal. You can tell the difference quite easily. Most briquettes consist of extenders. After the fire has been burned, take a look at the ashes. If there is a heaviness when cleaning out the ashes, then you are probably removing clay and other particles called extenders. If on the other hand, the ashes are light and almost want to float away when disturbed, then you have been burning true charcoal.

CHIPS (WOOD)

Unless you have a forest next to your house, there will be inherent expenses incurred in obtaining your cooking wood. If you had all the wood you needed, the ideal method of cooking with even and consistent temperatures would be to have a second fire located next to your smoke-cooker. This fire would be your source for coals. You would burn the actual wood in this second fire and, when needed, take a shovel, scoop up the required hot coals and add them to the grill or smoker. This method would all but eliminate flare ups and out of control fires while at the same time, insure even cooking temperatures.

Since this is not possible in most cases, many folks have resorted to using smaller pieces of wood to add the flavor without necessarily focusing on creating the heat. For example many use small wood chips, soak them in water and place them on the fire. As the water evaporates and the wood begins to burn slowly, the smoke flavoring from the burning wood flavors the meat.

There are many different sizes of wood chips, but for the sake of convenience, we will be discussing the three basic sizes:

Large - really too large to be called "chips"; rough cut and about the size of a softball
Medium - again rough cut and about the size of a rubber stamp
Small - Shavings really, larger than sawdust.

The large size, in addition to creating smoke, is large enough to also create heat. We would not necessarily soak these in water before using. Instead, simply place one on the fire as needed to keep the source of heat active. You must, however, have a sufficient source of heat already established before using these wood "chips".

Of the three, the medium chips are the most common and area usually available at the grocery store in the charcoal section. They are not really large enough to be a source of heat, however are sufficient to create the necessary smoke to flavor the meat. We suggest soaking these pieces of wood for 2 to 4 hours prior to use. After you have created the heat source in the grill or smoker, place a handful of these wood chips on the coals. They will hiss and simmer and as they slowly begin to dry and smolder, will create the needed smoke. Some folks will wrap the chips in heavy duty aluminum foil and puncture holes in the foil. After which they will place this bundle on the fire. The chips will also smolder and create the smoke needed.

Finally, the small chips are best used for making smoke in the gas grills. These chips are placed in a smoker box and the box is then placed over the gas burners. The smoker box is a cast iron box with a removable lid. The lid has several slits in the top to allow the smoke to escape. The wood chips smolder inside the box and you then have your smoke! The box could, I guess be used in wood grills and smoker, but the thing is somewhat heavy and would have a tendency to settle into the coals. It would then be difficult to add more wood/coals to the fire without having to take out the box first.

As you have seen, there are direct uses for each and as such, will deliver different and unique grilling and smoke-cooking opportunities. Good luck and most importantly, don't hurry and be sure to have fun!

GRILLED SHRIMP CHIMICHURRI

Serves 6

2 To 10 cloves garlic, peeled And coarsely chopped

1 Red jalapeno pepper, stemmed Seeded and coarsely chopped

1/4 cup Fresh oregano leaves

1 cup Fresh parsley leaves

1/4 cup Red-wine or sherry vinegar

1/2 cup Olive oil

1/2 Tsp. Kosher Salt

1 1/2 LB Jumbo Shrimp in the shell

Prepare the garlic. Traditionally this is a garlicky sauce, but the amount of garlic you use is up to you. Combine the garlic and jalapeno in a food processor and mince finely. Add the oregano and parsley and pulse to a fine chop. Add the vinegar, olive oil and salt, processing until smooth and emulsified. (The sauce can be used immediately; or pour into a jar, cover and refrigerate until ready to use. Just remember to let it warm to room temperature before serving)

Remove about 1/3 cup of the sauce to use as a baste for the shrimp. Butterfly the shrimp along the back and remove the vein. Place the shrimp, shell side down, on a well-oiled grill, 4 to 6 inches from the source of heat. Baste and flip then baste again. Cook about 3 to 4 minutes per side, or until the shrimp are pink and cooked through. Serve with the remaining sauce on the side.

The sauce can also be used with beef, chicken or pork.

FIRE ROASTED PEPPERS, EGGPLANTS AND ZUCCHINI

Serves 6

1 Red Pepper

1 Yellow Pepper

1 Eggplant

1-2 Zucchini

½ cup Virgin Olive Oil

1-5 cloves Garlic, sliced

Salt and Pepper to taste

Wash and dry vegetables. Partially peel eggplant, in strips, and then slice ½ inch thick lengthwise. Slice the zucchini ½ inch as well. Place all the vegetables over a wood or charcoal fire that has begun to die down. Turn all the vegetables until slightly charred on all sides. Open the peppers and remove the seeds, then cut in large wedges. Place all the vegetables on a serving platter and dress with the oil, garlic, salt and pepper. Serve at room temperature.

SMOKED RED SNAPPER OREGANATA

Serves 4-6

1 Whole Red Snapper 3-5 lbs., gutted and scaled

½ cup fresh Oregano packed

1 Lemon

¼ cup Olive Oil

Kosher Salt and Pepper to taste

Trim the sharp top fin with a kitchen shears then make 3 –4 shallow slits in each side of the fish.

Season the fish with salt and pepper inside and out. Tear the Oregano with your fingers and rub some into the slits in the fish then place the remainder on the inside of the fish. Cut the lemon in half and squeeze the juice all over the fish, place the lemon halves inside the fish. Brush both sides of the fish with oil.

Add some soaked wood chips to the coals 1 minute before placing the fish in a well-oiled fish grill and place over the moderate smoking fire. Close the lid and cook about 8 minutes per side. Place the cooked fish on a serving platter and dress with the remaining oil. Serve with lemon wedges

Grilled Angel Food Cake with Banana Rum Salsa

Serves 4

4 slices Angel Food Cake, 1 ½ - 2 inches thick

1 recipe Banana Rum Salsa

1 recipe Whipped Cream

Clean the grill well with a brush and wipe with a lightly oiled towel. Grill each piece of cake over medium coals until toasted and well marked on both sides. This will take under a minute per side. Set each piece on a plate and top with the salsa and whipped cream.

Banana Rum Salsa

Serves 4

1 cup slightly under ripe Banana, diced

1 Tbsp. Lemon Juice

2 Tbsp. Sugar, superfine

2 tsp. Mint. diced fine

3-4 Tbsp. Dark Rum

Combine the ingredients and refrigerate for 1 hour.

Whipped Cream

Makes 4 cups

2 Cups Heavy cream

4 Tbsp. Sugar, superfine

1 1/2 Tbsp. Vanilla Extract

Whip the cream with the sugar and vanilla. Keep very cold for serving.

Download and Print Fancy Grilling Recipes

 

The Cult of Bacon

In the twelfth century, a church in the English town of Dunmow promised a side of bacon to any married man who could swear before the congregation and God that he had not quarreled with his wife for a year and a day. A husband who could bring home the bacon was held in high esteem by the community for his forbearance. So what's changed?

We are in a cult of bacon. We seek its smoky meaty goodness as reward for "forbearing" all manner bad news hurled at us daily from our politicians, our bosses, nutritionists and even PETA. Bacon is no longer reserved for the myth of Sunday morning breakfast. It's now ubiquitous in our immediate gratification society. It's popping up in martinis, in ice cream and even chocolate covered at the great state fair.

Consider this nothing more than a hodgepodge collection of odd bacon facts;

A VERY UNSCIENTIFIC TASTING:

Niman Ranch Uncured Bacon - $6.79/12 oz (Alameda, Ca)

Salty with a full smoke aroma, and milder smoke flavor. Shrunk a lot after cooking

Nueskes Bacon - 7.95/12oz (Wittenberg, Wi)

Intense smoke aroma during cooking, however came through with a salty flavor bearing little or no smoke to the palatte. Normal amount of slice shrink.

Thielen Bacon - 8.35/16 oz. (Pierz, Mn)

Less salt with good smoke and surprising crunch not found in the other samples. Quite a bit of shrinkage.

 

Cuts of bacon

The names of rashers or slices differ depending on where they are cut from:

• Streaky bacon comes from the belly of a pig. It is very fatty with long veins of fat running parallel to the rind. This is the most common form of bacon in the United States.
• Pancetta is Italian streaky bacon, smoked or aqua (un-smoked), with a strong flavor. It is generally rolled up into cylinders after curing.
• Back bacon comes from the loin in the middle of the back of the pig. It is a lean meaty cut of bacon, with relatively less fat compared to other cuts and has a ham-like texture and flavor. Most bacon consumed in the United Kingdom is back bacon. Also called Irish bacon or Canadian Bacon.
• Middle bacon is much like back bacon but is cheaper and somewhat fattier, with a richer flavor.
• Cottage bacon is thinly sliced lean pork meat from a shoulder cut that is typically oval shaped and meaty. It is cured and then sliced into round pieces for baking or frying.
• Jowl bacon is cured and smoked cheeks of pork

Bacon joints include the following:

• Collar bacon is taken from the back of a pig near the head.
• Hock, from the hog ankle joint between the ham and the foot.
• Gammon, from the hind leg, traditionally "Wiltshire cured".
• Picnic bacon is from the picnic cut, which includes the shoulder beneath the blade.^[7] It is fairly lean, but tougher than most pork cuts.

 

THE FUNNIEST MAN CHILD ON HIS BACON OBSESSION:

 

NEW WAYS TO GET YOUR BACON ON:

 

Bacon Salt

An innovtive product that lets you get the taste of bacon just about anywhere salt goes, vegetables, popcorn, steaks etc. For the bacon maven who can't ever be too far from bacon.

 

BACONNAISE

An all natural, all vegetable mayonnaise product with the smell and taste of bacon. The ultimate

 

BACON PORN:

The Bacon Bra

Bacon Steak

 

BACON BLOGS:

Bacon Unwrapped  - Dennis Leary's bacon rant, plus other baconamania

Bacon Today - The Daily News of Bacon

Bacon Lover's Talk (BLT) - The lively home of the worldwide bacon community (Who knew there were bacon lovers on Fiji)

The Bacon Show - A new bacon recipe daily...forever

 

Technorati Tags: bacon

A Ham Primer

A ham is a pork cut that's taken from a hog's upper hind leg. There are three types of American hams: city hams, country hams, and fresh hams. City hams are the most common. They're soaked in brine (or injected with it) and then boiled or lightly smoked.  Many gourmets prefer country hams, which are dry-cured and then smoked and aged for added flavor. Fresh hams aren't cured at all and need to be cooked. 

America also imports several dry-cured hams from abroad, including prosciutto, Bayonne ham, Serrano ham, Black Forest ham, Westphalian ham, York ham, and Ardennes ham. These hams are similar to our country hams, except that they're often eaten raw while country hams are usually served cooked.  

Ham is relatively low in fat, but even low-salt hams are high in sodium.   

city ham = brine-cured ham = pumped ham = wet-cured ham Notes:  This is America's most popular ham, the kind that's pink, moist, and sweet.  Fresh hams are soaked in brine (or injected with it) and then boiled or lightly smoked.  Boneless hams = boned hams are easier to carve, but they're not as flavorful or attractive as bone-in hams.  A good compromise is to buy a bone-in spiral-sliced ham, which combines good flavor and convenience, or a ham steak (pictured at right).  City hams usually come fully cooked (check the label), but most people reheat them before serving.   

country ham = dry-cured ham   Notes:  These are made by rubbing salt over a fresh ham and then hanging it out to dry.  They're often smoked as well.  They tend to be salty, but gourmets often prefer them over city hams.  You cook them either by simmering them in water or frying them.  Some people soak them in water first to leech out some of the salt.  Mold often forms on country hams, but it's harmless and should simply be scrubbed off.   Country hams are common in the Southeast; elsewhere you can get them by mail order, or at Chinese markets.  Varieties include Virginia ham and Smithfield ham.   Substitutes:  prosciutto  

 

Ham information from Cooks Thesaurus

Pittsburgh Police Should Arrest Glenn Beck

 

Yesterday's horrific shooting of three police officers should be directly linked to the pandering rhetoric of Glenn Beck. His "grassroots" movement known as 9/12 is undeniably responsible for fueling the fear and paranoia in the mind of the young man who felt it was necessary to set an ambush dressed in a bullet proof vest and armed with ASSAULT RIFLES!!! in order to protect his rights to bear arms.

Glenn Beck needs to be removed from the airwaves. He needs to arrested as an abettor to this crime. Our first amendment rights were never meant to cover someone yelling fire in crowded theater. This arrogance under the guise of truth seen daily on Fox News must stop now!!!

In the essence of fairness, here's a recent Glenn Beck interview with NRA president Wayne Lapierre. Once you get your gag reflex under control from witnessing his smug demeanor...you'll hear the message one young man in Pennsylvania took too seriously.

BBQ Spring Training

The Southern tier of states have been in the BBQ temperature zone for about a month now, though many down south never stop firing their pit even in the dead of winter. For us here in the permafrost zone, the weather is just about to break, so now is the time get your gear ready for some top notch backyard cooking. And that can everything from shopping for a new grill to replacing the spatula you broke when you tried using it to scrape the ice off your windshield. (That long handle did look practical didn't it?)

For many the downturn means spending more time at home, so why not spend it around a smoking grill? You may need to spend a few bucks now to get your equipment up to shape, but it will pay back ten times when that first smoked pork butt or perfectly grilled fish lands on the table.

Here's some resources to find the fuel, and tools your looking for.

 

Charcoal and Wood

Run by grumpy Phil Mueller (actually a nice guy under there), Northwest Charcoal has been the underground source for Chef's and primal cooking enthusiasts for years. Call ahead for hours, prices etc.

Northwest Charcoal

2900 17th ave. S. Minneapolis

612-879-8044

 

For the Internet buyer. The web site is pretty impressive with fuel, tools, gadgets, grill etc. Check out the Smoke Pistol when click on.

Northwoods Smoke of Minnesota 

Royalton, MN

320-584-5025

 

Wood or Charcoal Grills

 

Weber, in my book, is the grill of choice. I've been grilling, roasting, smoking and generally cooking up a storm on Weber grills for about 30 years now. And in that time, I'm only on my third grill. That's how good they are and how long they last. (Even if you abuse it like I do). They're available just about everywhere that sells grills, but a visit to the web site is a lot of fun anyway.

 

Weber Grills

Palatine, Ill

(There are four Weber Grill restaurants around the Chicago area by the way. If your ever in the neighborhood and want to watch your food being cooked on a six foot diameter Weber grill, the foods not bad and it's worth the trip.)

 

I have a buddy who swears by his egg. I mean his Big Green Egg. This ceramic wonder broke into the market in the early 70's, but just a few years back started making a lot of noise on the retail scene and has become very popular with backyard Q'ers. I've cooked on it and do like it's flexibility. It can be a little pricey, but it will last a very long time and make some pretty tasty food. Based on an ancient oven design called a "kamado", it can and will cook anything you want from bread to seared ahi tuna.

The Big Green Egg

Atlanta, GA.

Gas Grill

There is no other gas grill than a Viking. Sure you'll see all kinds of cooking apparatuses down at the big box retailers, but when talking about gas grills think Rolls Royce when you see Viking and Yugo when you see any other grill. The difference is really that great. Viking also makes other household appliances, ranges, refrigerator etc. They even make a ceramic Big Green Egg charcoal burning grill. But their gas grills are like cooking suites for outdoors. Even the smaller ones are a real pleasure to grill on. The only thing they have tough time doing is smoking, but with a little ingenuity even that can be mastered. 

Viking Gas Grills

Greenwood, MS.

That's enough for now. You've got plenty to absorb here and I don't want you to tackle too much so early in the season. You need to stretch a little and get those grilling motions back.

 

Technorati Tags: barbecue,grilling,BBQ,grills,charcoal,wood,smoking,smoker

Time To Wake Up Your Inner Locavore

Besides dodging errant snowflakes or attending State Tourney games, March is an excellent month to start thinking about what your having for dinner this summer. You don't have to plan out the entire menu now...but if you want an inexpensive way to partake in the locally produced bounty of organic foods, you better start thinking about the source. Sure there's always the produce aisle at the supermarket, you see all those organic signs all over the place these days. And there's the hippie co-ops they're a good source of organic foods. Great but both of these can get rather pricey if your interested in doing a lot of home cooking this summer.

The answer is; join a CSA (Community Supported Agriculture), that is if your ready to commit to receiving about 30 pounds of fresh produce every week. A CSA is cooperative of sorts. Your membership fee acts as a purchase a guarantee for the farm. The catch is most, if not all, the local CSA's depend on you taking vegetables you may know very little or care very little about. There are some programs that will allow you to select specific varieties and quantities of fresh goods, but these can be just as costly as the grocery. There are also some smaller CSA's that poll their members for a list of vegetables they'd like to have grown. But this all takes some work to find out.

Your first step is to go to your local food co-op and talk to someone in the produce department about it. Their generally very knowledgeable about which CSA's they deal with or which ones use their stores as drop off points for members to pick up their weekly allotments. The next step is to go online to the Local Harvest web site (link below). Local Harvest is a non-profit organization that promotes sustainable agriculture and acts as a national clearing house connecting farmers and end users.

But whatever you do, you've got to act fairly quickly. Getting produce from a CSA is a commitment you need to make well in advance of the growing season. The process of joining a CSA will vary slightly from group to group, but generally, they all ask for the money up front (to pay for seed etc.). The price of a membership is generally $350 for a half membership, that means taking half a bushel a week and about $600 for a full membership that guarantees you a full bushel of fresh goodies every week. That's about 50 pounds of produce. Now for the average family of four, that's very doable. I know several people, who are too busy to worry about cooking 50 pounds of produce a week, split the membership with one or two neighbors. Most CSA's will start delivering the end of May and continue until the growing season ends or mid October, whichever is later.

Local organic and sustainable food that's reasonably priced is possible. You just need to do a little homework and be ready to make a commitment.

More Info on CSA's :

Local Harvest.org

Minnesota Department of Agriculture

Harmony Valley Farm

Rock Spring Farm

Molecular Gastronomy, Isn't It Really Just Culinary Boredom?

Are we so bored with our food that we need to find new and sometimes freaky ways to deliver the very same flavors we've gotten extremely used to over the last millennium of eating? I understand the artistry behind Molecular Gastronomy but I've always wondered why it was neccessary for the diner to surrender himself to the experience in order to partake in the particular "magic" the kitchen was producing. Now I've yet to make my way to El Bulli outside Barcelona, Ferran Adria's world class restaurant and undisputed Mecca of MG. (It is a primary mission in my life by the way to get there) I gladly join the throngs of culinarians hailing Ferran Adria as a genius. After all, he was the brave and forward thinking first cook to imagine the possibilities of this new way of cooking. I'm not calling all the other disciple of the practice charlatans either. Wily Dufrense and Grant Achatz are among the elite club of molecular practitioners who deserve every bit of praise they've received. They are just a few of the artistic pioneers who truly understand this new art form and have helped pushed it's boundaries like any good visionary artists should. But (and its a big one folks) the process put forth, first by the master himself Ferran adria of El Bulli, was to perform this culinary prestidigitation in a two and sometimes three hour showcase comprised of several dozen tastings, one more spectacular than the other. Each dish a work of art on to itself. In his pictorial journal "A Day At El Bulli", you begin to understand the hard work and dedication it takes to be an artist of his metal. But I always wondered tow things. Why can't the guest order from a menu and why are so many of the dishes artsy analogs of ordinary food.

Jose Andres has finally broken this mold, somewhat at Bazaar. In a recent review by New York Times critic Frank Bruni, he lauds Chef Andres for finally taking that first step showcasing the cutting edge his cooking style side by side with more traditional methods. For instance, Bruni waxes poetically on a dish of old world stuffed olives paired with orbs of olive essence trapped in a thin membrane (of what we're not sure) each orb delicatley placed in its own porcelain spoon. Bruni describes this dish as an attempt by the artist/Chef to allow us to compare the two worlds of cooking side by side. Ok, but what I got out of it was why bother with the orbs of olive essence if all the Chef is trying to do is fool us into thinking these are really olives. Why not just give me olives!! The way I see it it's kind of like trying to make a violin sound like a french horn. Sure it may be possible on some level, but why try. If you want to listen to a French horn, play a French horn. If you want to eat an olive...well you get the point.

So is it just culinary boredom that's opened this window into a world where Chefs try make things taste and look like their real counterparts? Wily Dufesne is famous for his eggs. Concoctions made of coconut whites and mango yolks, ok that's fun but what's the point other than the novelty. Great cooking should be more than just novelty. The last real breakthrough in cuisine was nearly 100 years ago when August Escoffier took us from the pomp and contrived cooking of Careme to the style of cooking we have today. Escoffier's cuisine demanded the Chef must understand the flavors, textures and characters of his ingredients. A cuisine who's simple rules demanded that everything on the plate be edible and the presentation of the food be recognizable as food. As an artistic force Molecular Gastronomy is expected to break these rules. All I've got to say is why? If it's art for art's sake, then I understand. But a cuisine needs to be more than that if it's going to be called cooking. Sure it's beautiful, fun, different and new...but for now I see it taking the same path as Nouvelle Cuisine that made a big splash nearly 40 years ago, then faded into anonymity leaving behind a method for making lighter sauces (good) and a presentation style (bad) that still reverberates like a fading echo through the kitchens of many old school Chefs. Molecular Gastronomy may be hurtling towards the same fate faster than Nouvelle Cuisine ever did because the specialized tools, equipment and chemicals are expensive and inaccessible to the average Chef. Besides in the latest issue of Saveur, their Dining in America issue, they listed their 12 restaurants that mattered. Not one sported a kitchen with a tank of liquid nitrogen.

 

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All Things Irish

I cant' tell you how often I've seen this twisted nose look on people's faces whenever I talk about Irish cuisine. The general consensus out there, even by some Irish ex-pats, is that there is no such thing. To them an Irish kitchen is where you go to boil your food...and not much else. I can't tell you how far from the truth that is. Irish cooks have a rich tradition of cooking with some of the best local ingredients you can ask find anywhere. Produce of all sorts, fish and seafood from the North Sea, pasture grazed beef, etc etc. Once I started to dig deep into research, I found flavorful, heart warming foods that truly reflected the Irish culture of hospitality. Fortunately we're seeing a growth of Irish pubs and restaurants, not only around the Twin Cities but around the world. Irish food is breaking out of the boiled corned beef and cabbage mold.

So with that and the advent of St. Patrick's day just around the corner, here are some old classic Irish recipes. And yes, one is for corned beef, but it's got a twist. Raise a pint and head for the kitchen, you may see what I see in the flavors of Ireland.

Irish Brown Soda Bread

Makes 1 large loaf

2 cups Whole Wheat Flour

2 cups All Purpose or Bread Flour
1 Tsp. Salt
1 Tsp. Baking soda
1 Tsp. Brown Sugar
2 ¼ cups Buttermilk

Pre-heat oven to 400°

Sieve the dry ingredients into a large bowl. Scoop up handfuls and allow to drop back into the bowl to aerate the mixture. Add enough buttermilk to make a soft dough. Now work quickly as the buttermilk and soda are already reacting. Knead the dough lightly - too much handling will toughen it, while too little means it won't rise properly.

Form a round loaf about as thick as your fist. Place it on a lightly-floured baking sheet or in a lightly floured 10 inch cake pan and cut a cross in the top with a floured knife. Bake near the top of a pre-heated oven, 400°, for 45 - 55 minutes. When baked, the loaf will sound hollow when rapped on the bottom with your knuckles. Wrap immediately in a clean kitchen towel to stop the crust hardening too much.

Serve warm.

Colcannon

Serves 4

1 lb. Cooked mashed potatoes (season well with salt and pepper and add a pinch of ground nutmeg or mace if you like) Also, make sure your Hot, cooked potatoes have been mashed and beaten till light and fluffy with the addition of 1/2 cup warmed milk.

1 lb. Well cooked (no time for al denté here) shredded cabbage or Kale

2 small Leeks, or spring onions finely chopped
1 oz. Unsalted butter plus some extra butter for serving

Salt and pepper

Fry the leek or onions very gently in the butter until softened. Then add the cabbage, coating them with all the buttery juices. Heat through and then add the contents of the frying pan to the hot mashed potato. Check for seasoning, this dish needs salt and a good grind of black pepper.
Serve in a warm dish, hollowing the center a little and add some extra butter in the hollow to slowly melt into the vegetables

 

Boxty Cakes

(Potato Griddle Cakes)

Serves 8

1/2 pound Raw potato

1/2 pound Mashed potato

2 cups Plain flour

1 ½ cups (approx.) Milk

1 large Egg

Kosher salt and Fresh ground black pepper

Grate raw potatoes and mix with the cooked mashed potatoes. Add salt, pepper and flour. Beat egg and add to mixture with just enough milk to make a batter that will drop from a spoon. Drop by tablespoonfuls onto a hot griddle or frying pan. Cook over a moderate heat for 3-4 minutes on each side. Serve with a tart apple sauce: or as part of an Ulster Fry, with fried bacon, fried sausage, fried eggs, fried black pudding, fried bread, fried soda bread...

 

Irish Whiskey Glazed Corned Beef

Serves 8

2 tbsp fresh ginger, minced
¾ cup dark molasses
1/3 cup honey
3 oz Irish whiskey
Combine ginger, molasses, honey and Irish whiskey. Heat over low heat to infuse ginger, about 10 minutes. Remove from the heat and reserve at room temperature.

7 lbs. Corned Beef, Boiled and trimmed

1 cup Whiskey glaze

1 cup Brown Sugar

Coat the beef on all sides with the whiskey glaze. Arrange the beef in a baking pan with about 2 inches of water. Rub half the sugar into the top of the beef. Cover the pan with foil and bake at 350° for 30 minutes. Remove the foil, turn the corned beef and coat with more glaze and the remaining brown sugar. Return the pan to the oven, without the foil cover. Bake 30 minutes more. Remove the beef from the oven and tent with foil to keep warm. Slice and serve with Colcannon or Boxty Cakes and Soda bread.

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