Showing posts with label is. Show all posts
Showing posts with label is. Show all posts
Saturday, April 5, 2014
Is “The Simpsons” the most delicious television show ever
Yes, it is. As most of you know the Simpsons movie is premiering next week. If you don’t know, you don’t have a television, since the trailers have been running non-stop for 3 months. I am a huge Simpsons fan, and I can’t think of another television show that has discussed, parodied (D’oh! I should have said “skewered,” then I could have said, “both literally and figuratively”), and celebrated food as much as The Simpsons. I don’t think anyone keeps statistics about these things, but there must be more food references per minute of air time on this show than another other show ever produced. After an exhaustive 20 minute search of YouTube, I found a few of my favorite foodie moments. So, grab a doughnut and enjoy!Homer really likes bacon (and so do I).
If a Chef only got to use one animal for the rest of their career which would they choose? It’s not even close.
Since it is Sunday, I thought I should post one clip devoted to the power of prayer.
Sorry Takeru Kobayashi, but competitive eating is NOT a sport. But, in this clip it sure is funny.
In case you don’t know how to pronounce “Chowder.”
The greatest theme restaurant parody ever!
My sister Valerie is a cop, so this is my favorite Simpsons food clip of all time.
Monday, March 10, 2014
This Blueberry Clafoutis Didn’t Get My Goat Cheese that is
I’ve had this wacky idea to try a berry-studded goat cheese clafoutis, so when I saw these gorgeous looking blueberries at the market, I figured the time was right. I had a couple ounces of leftover chèvre in the fridge, and was very excited to see if this possibly odd, but fundamentally sounds idea would work. And, everything would have, if I had only skipped breakfast that morning.
That morning I woke up starving, and facing a pile of emails and other less fun computer-driven busywork. So without thinking (literally) I whipped a nice cheese omelet, using the aforementioned cheese. D’oh!
It was a delicious mistake, and one I forgave myself for very quickly, but it also presented me with a tough choice. Go back out to the store, or just make a good, old fashioned, plain blueberry clafoutis. Laziness prevailed, and here you have it.
So, while I’m very proud of this clafoutis, I can’t help but wonder how much better it would have been with that faint, but tangy accent from the cheese. Maybe you could give it a try and let me know? I was simply going to add it to the blender and mix it right into the blender.
Anyway, goat cheese or not, this recipe is a great way to enjoy fresh, summer fruit, and as I mention in the video, this technique really lets it play the starring roll. I hope you give it a try soon. Enjoy!
Ingredients:
butter as needed
pint of blueberries
1/2 cup flour
2/3 cup sugar
1 1/4 cup milk
3 large eggs
1 tbsp vanilla
pinch of salt
Wednesday, February 26, 2014
Herb Braised Artichokes All rise the Court Bouillon is now in session
Ive had a few requests for an artichoke demo, so I thought I would show you one of my favorite ways to cook them. This is a variation of an old recipe my Uncle Bill showed me years ago. He uses dried herbs in his, but I had an oregano plant that needed a serious pruning and so I went with the fresh stuff. This method is sort of a cross between the two most popular ways to do artichokes; steaming or boiling, which is why I called it braised. As youll see, I basically simmer the artichoke in a small amount of liquid so they are actually more like steamed artichokes than boiled ones (which can dilute the flavor somewhat).
As far as official culinary terminology goes, the liquid Im using is referred to as a "Court Bouillon." This is simply a flavorful cooking liquid made of water, salt, and some type of acid (usually vinegar or wine). It is traditionally used to poach shellfish and other seafood, but works great for artichokes.The video recipe is very straight forward, so no need for any long-winded post today. Not to mention its Friday! I enjoyed my artichokes with a simple squeeze of lemon, but below you will see links to several video recipes Ive already posted that would work great as a dip for this. Enjoy!
Ingredients:
2 large globe artichokes
2 cloves fresh garlic
3 cups water
1/2 cup white vinegar
1 bunch fresh oregano, or 2 tbl dried (or any other herb combo you like)
1 tbl salt
black pepper to taste
*Serve with fresh lemon or one of the video recipes linked below:
Tarragon Aioli
Citronette
Blood Orange Tapenade
Almond and Parsley Salsa Verde
Saturday, February 22, 2014
The Roof the Roof the Roof is on Fire…
There was a rich family that lived in a large house in a small village. The rich family threw a party and invited the rest of the town. At this party, a few wealthy guests were given champagne and caviar, and the rest of the guests got cocktail franks and warm beer.Later that evening, after most of the guests had left, some of the wealthiest guests joined the rich family in a drunken game of naked twister. Someone slipped on a cocktail frank that one of the poorer guests had dropped, and knocked over a candle. Soon the large house was engulfed in flames.
The rich, drunk, and naked guests ran out on to the street, and screamed for the gathering crowd to help them put out the fire. But the mob, still angry they were only fed cocktail franks and warm beer, shouted back that the wealthy family should put out the fire themselves since they started it. Water was in very short supply, and the wealthy family insisted that they needed some from every well in the town.
The townspeople argued that the family had the deepest well in town, and should have plenty to put out the fire. The rich family said the well was dry because theyd just had their servants wash their many cars. This angered the mob even more.
As they argued, the fire spread, and the entire town burned to the ground.
Photo (c) Flickr user aagius
Saturday, February 1, 2014
A Classic American Apple Pie – Warning This Video Recipe is Almost All Filler
I really wanted to do a from-scratch apple pie video, complete with my Aunt Angelas famous homemade crust, but with my chicken wing video blowing up all over the web, and the Foodbuzz Blogger Festival this weekend demanding my time and attention, I took the easy way out (Im looking at you Sandra Lee), and used a pre-made pie dough.Besides, if youre not an experienced pie baker (and lets face it, youre not), theres nothing wrong with a little ready-to-use dough, as long as its filled with this fantastic apple pie filling.
What will strike you about this filling is just how few ingredients go in it. Sliced apples baked with sugar taste really, really good, and we dont want to mess with that too much. For me, a little pinch of nutmeg and some cinnamon is all this timeless combination needs.
The other key here, compliments of my mother Pauline, is to use multiple types of apples. There are subtle differences in flavor and texture with the wide variety of baking apples (basically defined as anything except Red Delicious). This is a classic case of the whole being greater than the sum of the parts.You can see the apple blend I used in the ingredient list below, but there are an endless number of combinations (not literally! I know how you math people are – you were so going to send me an email, werent you?)
Anyway, I hope you give this delicious apple pie filling a try, and if you were going to shock the world and bake a homemade pie for dessert for one of the upcoming holiday meals, this would be a great choice. Enjoy!
Ingredients:
6-8 baking apples (depending on size) I used 2 Granny Smith, 2 Braeburn, 2 Fuji
1/2 lemon, juiced
1 cup white sugar
3 tbsp cornstarch
1/8 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp cinnamon
very tiny pinch of salt
2 tbsp butter
1 egg, beaten
ready to use pie dough (I used Pillsbury)
Monday, January 20, 2014
A Vegetarian Shepherds Pie is Called a What
This photo is from a video shoot I just did for About.com on "How to Make Shepherds Pie." I will post the recipe here as soon as it goes "live" so you can make a pan for your flock.Im also brainstorming a video recipe for vegetarian Shepherds pie, based on caramelized mushrooms.
Although I know a few people that would be perfect for the challenge of herding vegetables, "Vegetarian Shepherds Pie" is a pretty silly name for obvious reasons.
So, Id like a little help coming up with a name. Here are a few ideas I have so far: Foragers Pie, Gardeners Pie, Vegetable-Murders Pie, and Workers Collective Pie. Let me know if any of those appeal to you, or give me your own ideas. Thanks!
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