Been on Hi-ATE-US

More photos from our trip to follow, but chew on these for now!

Le Tour

With Le Tour de France in full swing, the images on the telly remind me each day of the old axiom "you eat what you are". The obvious and irrefutable association between what "they" eat and what they are, the metaphor of the twenty-some stages and the 28-day dry aging process, the parade of shaven muscle on display, well, it all naturally led me to this!

Smoked Salmon and Sausage Summer Rissoto

Summah Time! MAKE THIS! Start with your favorite Salmon - Farmed, Fresh, or "Farm Fresh", all work well. (TOOL TIP for DIY-ers, Marinade right in the styro tray. Simply slit the shrink wrap, pour in your marinade, and rest "dans l'évier") Smoke it if you got one, but otherwise simply buy best-quality pre-smoked salmon and be glad for it. How to for the Rissoto:

2 cups arborio rice
13 cups stock (black or green package, please)
1 cup flour
2 cups onion, finely diced
1 package Pepperoni Bites
2 tablespoons margarine
8 oz Your-Smoked Salmon (skinned and slivered)
8 oz marinated, uncooked Salmon
8 oz Andouille Sausage (grilled and sliced)
4 red potatoes, cooked and chunked
1 cup skim milk
1 cup sour cream
salt and pepper to taste

Heat the chicken stock in a large saucepan on medium heat. In a second large pan, melt the margarine and saute onions until translucent. Add flour and stir continuously for 5 minutes. Increase heat to medium-high, and with a wire whisk, add flour, margarine and onion mixture to the liquid. Keep stirring and break up the lumps that form naturally. Add Salmon, Salmon, Pepperoni, and Sausage, then stir. Add potato chunklettes, milk, sour cream, and salt and pepper to taste, and continue stirring. Decrease heat to medium-low, transfer mixture to third large pan, and simmer for 20 minutes, uncovered, stirring continuously with your left hand to avoid burning or sticking. In a 4th large saucepan, prepare your Risotta a'la méthode classique, and stir continuosly for 20 minutes with your right hand. When the Salmon preparation and the Risotta are both done, lightly fold one into the other. Serve in rimmed bowls with chopped chives, chervil, and a dry Pinot Gris. Goes great with a composed salad of rocket greens, potato salad, tomato, and of course, Smoked Salmon! FISH ON!

Honey Pot

Getting kids to the table can be a challenge, and immersing them in le tradition d' culinare is more challengine still. I've found that a bit of kitsch and the considered melding of the elegant, the proletarian, and the unexpected (not to mention an active and exuberant celebration of all that is wonder and whimsey!) are just the right bait! Last night we surprised the kids with a (post-modern?) centerpiece of Astramaria and Beeler's Bacon, a groaning bowl of Kansas City Masterpiece Barbecue chips in hotel silver, and daikon radish over cottage cheese in Apache-fired clay bowls. In return, the kids brought something unexpected to the table, too - open minds and eager appetites! They didn't even NOTICE the avocado on their hamburgers!

Who's not for Short Cakes?

As Ra-Ray says, "If you don't hear me say it on the show, I probably don't know it." I love that freshness about her - she's so real, and that's so right. Honestly, if I had to choose just ONE desert from today's photos (the Ra-Ray photo was taken with my phone right off the telly), I don't know that I could. Could you? "Let's not and say we did", and simply COMBINE the two, using these beautiful berries and Her recipe! Talk about Dovetailing nicely! How to?

2 Tbsp. softened Neufchatel Cheese (TOOL TIP: 1/3 Less Fat than Cream Cheese, with 2/3 the flavor)
1 Tbsp. strawberry preserves
2 individual-portion sponge cake "bowls"
1 cup sliced fresh ORGANIC strawberries (10 or so big ones)
2 Tbsp. thawed COOL WHIP LITE Whipped Topping
COMBINE Neufchatel cheese and preserves, then gently spoon evenly over cake bowls. Top with strawberries, and then top with topping.

If you have leftover berries, mix them with a dallop of preserves, then spread atop creamy-cheesy whole-wheat Freedom-Toast for a breakfast treat. Whenever I serve this dish, my sweetie exclaims "Boom berries!" I'll take that as a compliment!

Wet Meat and Technology

While recently looking through the United States Patent Office Web site (something I do OFTEN - Beef Burgundy is so DONE, and this is where you find the freshest ideas), I stumbled across an abstract for a food label that can be applied directly to wet meat. The abstract states "A label (1) to be applied to meat, with a paper layer (2) which has a front (3) which can be printed or written upon. To make a label (1) which sticks or adheres to both wet and dry spots on the meat and which can be easily removed again, on the back (4) of the paper layer (2) there is at least one area (7) with adhesive (6) and at least one area without adhesive (8)."

I'm looking into this technology, big time. Those of you who have been around the Triple-S for a while are familiar with my codified freezer labeling system, but imagine if you could employ wet-meat label technology directly to your meat, enabling one to wrap multiple cuts inside of TRANSPARENT freezer wrap, saving both freezer paper and freezer room? The whole concept is mind-blowing. If this idea makes it to market, I'm first in line. To be completely honest, 2-season meat isn't “at it’s best”, and often requires significant coaxing to present well. The dish you see below (a bit like Argentinean Chiaroscuro, but more in keeping with the wet theme) completely stretched my imagination and tapped out my skills. What started out almost 6 months ago as Hangar steak barely made it to the table as this:

Couldn't we all use an easy day once in a while? If technology gives us that, shouldn't we accept agreeably? When I make art, and food IS art, I think about the ability of my creation to connect with others, to bring them into the process. I hope I've done that for you today.

"Only the knife...

....knows what goes on in the heart of a pumpkin."
-Simone Schwarz-Bart

They say that reading is a basic tool in the living of a good life. As you read these words that I humbly write, you're using your tool to understand mine, and that circularity echoes the cycle of food and life. As you give to me through your reading and commentary, I'd like to now give back to you with a simple introduction. These are my friends, the tools of the trade.

Born in the USA!

We on this continent should never forget that men first crossed the Atlantic not to find soil for their ploughs but to find better soil in which to plant their maize.

Finally, tomorrow brings the first day of summer - Independence Day, freedom from the torrents of spring, and time, finally, to pop the top on a host of warm weather favorites. We've served this dish on the Family 4th for as long as I can remember, and to me it's as foundational as Mint Juleps on Derby Day or Bratwurst at Cherry Blossom festival. This dish IS freedom! How to?

Lay down a thinnish slick of your favorite cornbread mixture in a 9" x 13" glass baking dish (no more than 1/4 inch thick). Bake it in a 350f oven for 12 minutes, and then let it cool. Next, spread a layer of BLWB* Refritos (recipe below - make this the day before, and make PLENTY - keep it in the refrigerator for quesadilla filling and chip-snacking), followed by a generous sprinkling of green and red peppers, black (pitted) olives, and onions and pepperoncinis if you like them. Now spread a generous amount of good quality bagged and shredded orange-and-white mexican-style cheese over the top, lay on perfectly sliced red tomatoes, and return the dish to the oven for 5 minutes. Finally, fill your pastry bag (use a wide nozzle) with sour creme or, if you're naughty, crème fraise (as a reminder of who it is that we're free from), and spritz a dollop every 2 inches or so. Cut into squares, plate, and serve with Summer Slaw (pictured - recipe REDACTED), cold lemonade, or a light summer lager.

*Basil Lemon White Bean Dip:
2-15 ounce cans refried beans, drained
1⁄2 cup chicken stock
2 cloves garlic, minced
1⁄2 cup fresh Parmesan cheese, grated
1⁄2 cup loosely packed fresh basil, plus whole leaves to garnish
1 tablespoon lemon juice
⅛ teaspoon ground pepper

In a heavy saucepan over medium heat, combine the beans, chicken stock, and garlic. Simmer for 5 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in the Parmesan cheese. Let cool for 10 minutes. In a food processor, blend until smooth. Chop the basil and stir into the mixture with the lemon juice and the pepper.

TOOL TIP REMINDER: The changing season is a reminder to rotate your coded freezer packs, so eat those BLACK packages this evening!

TOOL TIP: Lean Carburation

When preparing burgers or other grilled sandwiches, carefully slice the middle out of your buns with a long-bladed, serrated bread knife. Not only does this technique DRASTICALLY reduce the carbs you consume, but you can add the discarded bread right back into the meat mixture as an extender! In the first picture you see the buns fresh from the store, followed by a shot of the just-cut buns and their discarded centers, and finally, the FINISHED PRODUCT (Oi, somebody's getting man-hands!)

Loudly Unspoken

The distinction between food and art is ethereal. Some may see this as a blank canvas full of possibility, while others may see it as dinner. Where do you stand?

Carolina Sushi - Fusion or Fission?

As I blogged on Friday, we'd planned to go for sushi, but events conspired to foil that notion. Since I hadn't planned to cook, there wasn't much in the icebox, but what do we always say here at the Triple-S? Cooks COOK! I broke out a (black code) package of red-eye gravy and got creative with bits of okra, fresh kale, a box of Uncle Ben's, and a bit of left-over saddle of rabbit, and Wah-LAH! Let's just say that nobody left the table hungry!

TOOL TIPS: Taking the Ax to Axioms!

As Dana always says (my sweetie calls her Sneaky Spice – huh?), “it depends on what ‘it’ is”, the point being, things aren’t always what they seem. A Cook (from now on we’ll capitalize that word – I think it’s warranted, don’t you?) HAS to think outside of the box and simply can’t allow convention to limit creativity. To help you start to think like a Cook, let’s look at three old axioms, and turn them on their heads!

1. “A watched pot never boils”. While not technically true, it does take a pot a long time to boil, especially if you have an electric range, but NOT because you’re watching it. A pot has too much surface area and so the heat evaporates right out of the water. TOOL TIP: boil water in a kettle with a lid to keep the heat in and cut your TTB (time to boil) in half.

2. “Catch as catch can”. If you buy from a fishmonger and get suckered into buying “what’s fresh today”, you’re beholden to the seafood market, seasonality, and “what’s available”. If the boats have a bad day, you can’t get what you want without paying BOO-COO bucks. TOOL TIP: beat the law of supply and demand by buying FARMED fish (they’ve even trained salmon to eat corn these days, arguably making a better, near-organic grain-fed fish – who hasn’t grilled salmon and corn on the cob on a summer day?

3. “A chicken in every pot” will cost YOU time and money. Use Better than Bouillon, and don’t think twice.

Put my fish in a Box!

A fish, a knife, a box, and WOW! The most simple and elegant of all cuisines. Looking forward to the weekend, Sushi on the town, and a day away from the "iron maiden."

Cobia? Kiwi!

Ceviche is usually seafood marinated in citrus, and we often serve it as a salad or a main with a crackling Chardonnay. I'm told that the name of this exquisite dish comes from the Quechua "siwichi", but it may also be related to the Spanish word "escabeche", which comes from the Arabic term "sikbaj", and the that's where the road ends. Sounds like a Moorish dish to me. It occured to me that when matching wine and food, we have two choices, to go "like" (big Barolo, big tomato sauce), or "against" (big Barolo, vichysoise). Since classis ceviche is a double "against" dish (there aren't that many "terroirs" where fish and citrus co-exist, and after all, one ingredient is a fish and the other a fruit), I thought, could I imagineer a "double like" take on this family favorite?. Thus inspired, I now offer to you this new twist on a classic. Take your favorite citrus fruit (here we're using Kiwi), and marinate the fruit in it's OWN juice! Seems simple, that is until you TASTE! Slice thin, serve atop fresh greens, and see where it leads. (NOTES - 1) the apple is simply a prop for the photograph - you DO need to use citrus fruit for this dish, as the citric acid in the fruit juice "cooks" the fruit, and 2) I haven't put the fruit in the "pot" yet in the photograph, so just imagine the rest of the preparation).

All Hail Snout to Tail!

I found THIS in the freezer. I didn't put it there (must have been the "other" half), because I would have used this TOOL TIP: Label your food before it goes into the freezer! I use a Sharpie pen, but I don't stop there - I COLOR CODE the packages, using a GREEN pen for spring, RED for summer, Yellow for autumn, and BLACK for winter. This way I always know (within three months, give or take) the "born-on" date of any item in my freezer. RULE! I never eat more than 2 shades out of season. For example, today is June 26, so I know I can eat Green and Black packages, but I would NEVER eat a Red package, and that's the "2 season" rule in a nutshell. Now the package in the first picture presented a problem, because it's clearly meat, and meat's money. What to do? TOOL TIP: When facing the unknowable, tame it with the unthinkable. You can see the result the second picture. "When a cook cooks, cook." Enjoy!

Compost or Consomme?

Maybe this is why the culinary elite of the world are caravan-ing their way over the Pyrenees, out of France and on to Spain. The Matador of El Bulli is showing us all the way, and “Bronoise” isn’t on the map.

Fox in the Hen House?

This morning we did a little experiement. While the golden, crunchy, waffles you DO see might make you want to set the clock back for a "ground hog day" breakfast, it's the Waffles you DON'T see that tell the real story. The kids left the cattle and ate the chickens! simple as that! Most Saturday's we lunch at the RR, and no matter WHAT we say, no matter HOW we cage and cajole, the kid's won't touch the golden chicken fingers - it's hamburgres only for this crowd. But this morning they went through the chickens like they were past their born-on-date. Go figure! Maybe it really ISN'T “better to be the head of chicken than the rear end of an ox” (as the old proverb goes), if seeing the Son rise tomorrow is on your agenda!.

"Red beans and ricely yours...."

“Red beans and ricely yours." They say that Louis Armstrong loved red beans and rice so much he signed his personal letters with this salutation (I bet he had to do without them on the Apollo 11 flight!!). Beans and rice are always a favorite around here, and if you've ever heard the saying "inhabitants of underdeveloped nations and victims of natural disasters are the only people who have ever been happy to see beans and rice", well, you might have to consider a little different definition for "underdeveloped nation" by my way of thinking. We like them, and this nation is ANTYHING but indeveloped. We make ours with ham (NOT the prancy stuff from Spain where the fat melts away from the lean at the same temperature as human blood - rub that stuff on your lips for a few seconds and you end up with a lard pool on your chin!). We use good smoked hocks from a local butcher, but the real secret is.....chicken.

Here's how we do it: Start with 4 qts of water and a roasted chicken (pick one up at Costco off the rotisserie - no need for free-range for this dish, and it's a lot less work). Put the WHOLE chicken into a boiling water, turn the heat down to a simmer, and leave the lid OFF. After about 3 hours you should have NO MORE than 1/2 cup of concentrated chicken essence. Now throw the chicken away, strain the essence, and put it back into the pan. Add the "Trinity" (see photo in blue bowl - peppers, scallions, mozzarella, and a little avocado), 1 big ham hock, 1 32oz. can V8 juice, 2 bottles of your favorite amber liquid, then add salt, pepper, and your favorite hot-sauce to taste. Finally, pour in 1 bag of red beans (the stars of this show), and a WHOLE, UNCUT white onion (it'll cook down just fine). Cover the pot tightly, set the heat to low, and go to bed. This is a gulf-coast variation of this classic, and like many vegetable preparations, it cooks over night! Turn it off in the morning when you put on your coffee, and just turn the pot back up to reheat 20 minutes before you're ready to serve (this dovetails perfectly with your rice preparation). Leftovers are better still as the flavors become "neighborly" in the icebox (you can see the picture of ours heating in the pan). Serve with a BIG salad (you can use your leftover trinity here and tie the two courses nicely together). This is the perfect dish for a hot summer day. ENJOY!

"One Swallow does not a summer make"

We always buy great bread; after all, it's the "stuff of life." Well, the word's gotten out within the neihborhood bird population, and our birds eat well as a result. When I have leftover bread I like to slice the loaf lengthwise (if it's a good, crusty, Italian pane, all the better), then carefully slice each half into razor-thin "toasts" (use care - when working with day-old product, you run the risk of crumbling if you try to go too thin). I find that even smaller birds are able to manage this type of presentation, and while it may seem silly to say so, I believe they appreciate the little bit of extra effort. TOOL TIP: use a good quality LONG bladed serrated bread knife for this task (I like to imagine that I'm preparing toast points for The President and our First Lady, and that I'll be the one serving him - Give it your BEST!).

Intelligent Design - "SomeOne" knows I'm a foodie!

I've applied Round-Up to this little patch of gravel twice since early spring, and still, SomeOne decided that I (of all people) needed a wild strawberry plant. Not a miracle exactly, but more evidence still that our efforts aren't necessarily "our" efforts. Now if I could just get the word out that a Rhubard plant wouldn't be unwelcome.......

Sunny Day Kid Project

So many of the neighborhood kids come from co-op environments with really aware and smart and involved parents that BITD "rainy day projects" have become "sunny day projects" (these people don't want the kids to spend too much time in the O-zone*). Faced with entertaining a couple of restless kids this weekend, and with Saturday cartoons well over (The Cartoon Network alone might be a reason to move up to expanded cable), I had to think fast. Fortunately I had a couple of these really neat lucite magnet blocks around the house, and from there it was a simple matter of dumping out the kitchen junk drawer on the floor! I told the kids an imaginative story about them being artists, and asked them to use the magnets, staples, tacks, and xacto blades (left the paper protectors on those - NO WORRIES!) to create sculptures! They spent almost thirty-five minutes ENTHRALLED in really imaginative play, and everone joined in. Must confess, I made one myself, though I'm loathe to post my own work. Any old ways, here's a couple of shots of what the kids did - I hope you find them inspiring and that they remind you that toys aren't just "in the attic" - they're EVERYWHERE!!!



* (O-My! Al Gore says the sun can kill!!!)

Taco Night in Canada!

Well, we're not Canadien (Canadian, nest cest pois?), but growing up I rememember eating crisp shell tacos and watching "Hockey Night in Canada" every Wednesday night (we didn't have cable, so the Canadien station was the only non-network station we got on the old UHF band). Even today, when I smell the coriander and the cumin and the chilie in the pan I think of Ken Dryden in the slot and Guy Lefluer pushing the puck up ice. I never played the game, but sense that I may have had a flair for it if given the chance. Any-hoo, last night's tacos were a HAT TRICK if I do say so myself. All fresh, all certified organic (except for the white corn shells, beef, avocado, and tomato) and enjoyed by all. I even made couple of the OLD school school variety like I had as a kid - guess if you can tell which are which. "Temps de Taco!!!"

Did someone say "Tea"?

It's all about simplicity, presentation, and an authentic spirit. High Tea!!!

Sangria-on-a-Stick

With the first day of summer coming next Wednesday (Fireworks!), it's time to revive one of my favorite summer recipes and give a shout-out to Ra-Ray for coming up with it (that's why she's the "Clown Princess of all that is Culinaire" and my sweetie calls me the "NTAC of the Domicile" - I'm not sure what that means, but it's become our little joke, and what's wrong with a little secret once in a while?). MAKE this RECIPE! If you want to change it up a little, I learned last year that you can do the same thing with any neighborhood punch as long as the ratio of hard spirits to blush is about 60:40 (don't use your best vodka here - the fruit alone will make even Monarch taste great and nobody will be the wiser - :) )

Kid's Breakfast

The kids love these little "two-bit" pancakes (we're not a "silver-dollar" family these days), especially when plated "ala Chicken Body". As I always say, “The difference between 'involvement' and 'commitment' is like an eggs-and-ham breakfast: the chicken was 'involved' - the pig was 'committed'.” No pig (Pork fat!!!) this morning, but I always think of pancakes as a gateway drug, so we're one step away from Pigs-in-a-Blanket, and served on these bee-YOO-tiful rooster plates, that chicken almost has a "Fried Stake" (You know I LUV the PUN!!). Oh well, chicken one day, feathers the next - let's see what tomorrow brings! Enjoy!

Cheese Please

We've given up sugar and we've opened up Chez Frommage! As they say in Gaul (so old school), "Le fromage de de phase prolonge le jour." Cheese for desert is done and done right (there), and now it's "done right HERE!". One cheese is a Montlake Frond, and the other a local (Artisinal and SLOW) Cavia Rodentia Skim - so naughty, but no glucose in either, so what's not to love. Enjoy!

Food of Love

When last in NYC (the BIG APPLE!!!) I ate a great (wow....maybe some poetry tomorrow? "Ate"....."Great". Oh heck, I'll "wait" HA!)...pastrami sandwich at a place that a local friend turned me on to called the Carnegie Deli. It's totally secret, and I'd give the address but they would never, ever forgive me!!!

Anyway, I found a picture of the sandwich I took that day (it's the first picture), and last week I made one EXACTLY like it (see second picture)! We found Pastrami on-line after a tip from a blogger friend (Thanks Stu!) from a company called Boar's Head, matched it with some genuine San Francisco Sourdough bread, and VOILA! We were Back in the Apple! Soooo Good! Comment with GOOD AS NYC RECIPE in the subject line and I'll send it along! The trick is double wrapping the sandwich in wax paper and then putting it under the heat lamp (TOOL-TIP - if you don't have a pro-quality range like mine, any short table lamp with a 100w bulb will work just as well. Leave it under the lamp for 20 minutes and it's GOOEY goodness!!!!) to melt the relish, american cheese, and "miracle (redacted - it's a trademark issue)" into a delicious sauce.