Last weekend I visited Fiesta Farms to do a little shopping for that aforementioned rabbit, among other things.
While I wandered the aisles, one of the other treats I came across was a lovely 2 pound clamshell of those alluring Meyer lemons. Surprising even myself, I resisted the urge to buy up the whole stand on sight.
You see, I’ve been enjoying the taste of Meyer lemons in restaurants for ages, but until now had never seen them at the grocery store. Of course, since I use an organic delivery service I rarely go to a grocery store to begin with, so I should hardly be surprised. I’ve been pondering where to find Meyers (as well as the more ornate Buddha’s hand) for quite some time, so when I spotted these I immediately had to snap some up.
Coincidentally, days later I happened on a fellow Torontonian’s entry in Tigress’ Can Jam who had managed to find Buddha’s hand lemons (Whole Foods apparently carries them – go figure!) in Toronto, so I imagine I will be visiting them soon, too. I’m not entirely certain what I intend to do with a Buddha’s hand lemon yet, but I’ve been rolling a concept similar to limoncello around in my mind along with the possibility of infusing it into some rye. But that is a different tale for another day. Back to those Meyer lemons…
(more…)
Tags: Baking, cookies, Epicurious, Fiesta Farms, frosting, lemons, Purveyors, Recipes, Restaurants, The Hoof Cafe, Whole Foods, whoopie pie
Posted in Baking, Purveyors, Recipes, Restaurants | No Comments »
A couple of weeks ago, I found myself purchasing Michael Ruhlman’s Ratio application from the iPhone App Store.
It’s a bit of a dirty little secret that I’ve become addicted to food and cooking apps, and I have the Epicurious, Jamie’s 20 Minute Meals, and Nat Decants apps to prove it, and now Ratio as well.
Now, I may have a fair amount of respect for the Charcuterie book (moreso for its co-author than for Ruhlman himself) but the more I see him on TV (typically on No Reservations) and with that whole “are we too stupid to cook” thing he blundered last week, the more I’ve started to view him as a pompous, self-aggrandizing ass.
But, I had bought the app for the inherent practicality of it, so I still intended to test it out.
(more…)
Tags: beef, Charcuterie, Cooking, Epicurious, Jamie Oliver, Michael Ruhlman, New Projects, No Reservations, oxtail, pasta
Posted in Cooking, New Projects | 3 Comments »
Like the enduring search for a suitable mate, a good brownie is similarly hard to find.
There are fluffy brownies, cakey brownies, nutty brownies and frosted brownies. There are chunky brownies, sweet brownies, crispy brownies and chewy brownies. There are more kinds of brownies than there are hours in the day, and for my money, most of them are not worth the bother. I’ve had success with Alton Brown’s cocoa brownies in the past, but every once in a while I get a craving for something just a little bit different…
To my mind, brownies are the ideal candidate for simplicity. I don’t want nuts, frosting, M&M’s or candy mix-ins. And I most certainly don’t want them swirled with cheesecake or peanut butter or any other heavy viscous substance. When I take that first bite, I want the top to shatter in a mixture of crunchy, caramelized chewy delight, while the interior should be rich without being dense or cakey.
In short, I’m looking for a brownie miracle.
Months ago, when I finally located some 100 Mysteries tea, I’d found it a fantastic ingredient to experiment with. It made its way into a panna cotta, and I’d intended to try additional applications, but other projects got in the way. This weekend, I finally managed to pick up where I left off by producing a batch of 100 Mysteries brownies.
(more…)
Tags: 100 Mysteries, Alice Medrich, Alton Brown, Baking, brownies, chocolate, Epicurious, Recipes, tea, Tea In The Sahara
Posted in Baking, Recipes | No Comments »
If anyone’s been wondering, running a semi-successful food blog can be exhausting. I have no shortage of inspiration and ideas to write about, but finding the time to get it all down on virtual paper can be a bit of a challenge. Plus I impose deadlines on myself (like posting a new Foodie 13 every 2 weeks or so) to try and ensure I’m keeping things fresh and relevant for followers from the internest. With that in mind, I give you our next installment of the Foodie 13…
There’s nothing I love more than foodie TV. Growing up I could sit and watch cooking shows for hours on end, always captivated and entertained by what was happening onscreen. When the Food Network finally came to Canada, it was one of the first times I felt like there were other people out there who were just like me. There’s something so magical (and perverse) about the seeming perfection that’s portrayed on food television that I can’t get enough of, even though like most media, it upholds an unrealistic and mostly unattainable ideal. As an adult, I find it’s almost the only television I bother with anymore, except for the occasional movie, infomercial (for laughs) or gameshow (Supermarket Sweep anyone?). So, in no particular order, an ode to some of my favorite TV pleasures both new and old, beloved and reviled.
1- Iron Chef (Japan) - Plenty of people hate this show and think it’s terribly gimmicky, but it’s exactly that kitschiness that I love. From the bad dubbing and voice-overs, to the cardboard cutout-like poses of each of the chefs, it’s so over the top that you can’t look away. A few things I especially loved about this program were the Prince of Pasta’s rising out of the floor second-rate intro, the floor reporter always calling for Fukui-san (which to this day I still think of as squeegee-san), and the papi (grandfather-like) Japanese chef Rokusaburo Michiba. Attempting to watch the American version proves that it literally pales in comparison, and as I’ve noted before, I can’t even be bothered to watch unless Jeffrey Steingarten is on.
2- The Urban Peasant - Watching reruns of this show today is proof that the sands of time can soften memories. When I was younger I was transfixed by James Barber drunkenly cooking up a storm, but when you revisit the show now, you realize how unappetizing and unsanitary his food and preparation are. I liken that time in food TV to the wild west; an era where people did not know better, or necessarily realize what would make good TV. It was definitely the polar opposite of the hyper-stylized completely pre-prepared Rachel Ray type shows we have today, and for that reason alone, it makes it on my list. Plus, you can’t deny that he always looked like he was having a rollicking good time!
3- Good Eats - Long before Alton Brown became the affable, American version of Shinichiro Ohta, there was (and still is) Good Eats. A show for the food geek in all of us, Alton managed to combine science, cooking and some unique comic performances into one tight and tasty package. Always informative, the show specialized in not only teaching you the recipe, but explaining the why behind the recipe too. I value Alton Brown’s opinion so much that when I once saw a $200 blender on one episode, I ordered it the very next day. And while the RPM turned out to be nothing more than a flashy kitchen gadget with a tachometer, the show’s cooking advice has never steered me wrong.
4- Cook Like A Chef - I’m almost positive this show never aired outside of Canada, but I couldn’t help but include this small piece of Canadiana. The premise behind Cook Like A Chef was a revolving cast of great Canadian chefs, showcasing their unique talents for the world to a cool, jazzy tune with lots of 360* shots. Typically each episode consisted of 2 or 3 segments of the chefs preparing tasting portions of their signature dishes. Notable names attached to the project included Ned Bell, Michael Bonacini and Carolyn McCann Bizjak, most of whom are probably unknown outside of the Great White North anyway. While the show originally aired in 2001 shortly after the Food Network’s Canadian inception, it’s been enjoying somewhat of a renaissance now that the Food Network has put a greater focus on Canadian content again.
(more…)
Tags: A Hamburger Today, Alice Waters, Alton Brown, America's Test Kitchen, Anthony Bourdain, Carolyn McCann Bizjak, Chef School, Cook Like A Chef, CuisinArt Resort, Culinary Institute Of America, East Meets West, Epicurious, Feasting On Asphalt, Feasting On Waves, Fink, Food Network, Gennaro, Good Eats, Heston Blumenthal, In Search Of Perfection, Iron Chef Japan, James Barber, James Chatto, Jamie At Home, Jamie Oliver, Jeffrey Steingarten, Just Like Mom, Kenji Alt, Lists, Michael Bonacini, Ming Tsai, Ned Bell, No Reservations, Pacquale's Kitchen Express, Paul Finkelstein, Rachel Ray, Rokusaburo Michiba, Shinichiro Ohta, Stratford Chef School, Supermarket Sweep, television, The Chef's Domain, The Fat Duck, The Foodie 13, The Screaming Avocado, The Urban Peasant, Tom Colicchio, Top Chef, Top Chef: Masters
Posted in Foodie 13, Lists | No Comments »
-
-
The Bride of Frankenstein – Day 6
-
-
My Golden Glory
-
-
Up Close And Personal
There are few things in life I love more than a really good piece of bread, except perhaps the Everyman, or a really good piece of bread with some freshly churned homemade butter. I find it so incredibly fascinating that the same 3 or 4 ingredients (flour, water, salt, yeast) can create such a myriad of different flavors, textures and effects through such minute variations.
I’m not talking about chemicalated Wonder Bread though, but a nice crunchy baguette or crusty sourdough. I’ve waxed poetic over the joys of focaccia over the years, and dabbled in bagels and crackers. However, my Achilles heel has continually been my lack of know-how and experience when it comes to more artisanal bread matters. I’ve turned out plenty of delicious quick breads using my bread machine but somehow anything more complicated always seems to literally fall flat.
Several weeks ago I attempted to grow my own levain, in the hopes that it would help me work towards becoming a better baker. I’d found incredibly detailed instructions on Epicurious.com by (apparent) bread guru Rose Beranbaum. About a week into the process I ended up killing the levain (which I’d named Frankenstein) by forgetting to feed it a few too many times. I dejectedly flushed him down the sink and a week later decided to start again. This week’s levain is far from robust, but does not appear dead, so thank god for small miracles. I’ve named this one Bride of Frankenstein, and hopefully in a few more days I’ll get a chance to see what she tastes like.
All of this failure was convincing enough for me to decide that I needed to get educated. I went out and purchased a few books upon the recommendations of several food bloggers I respect. I don’t believe that The Bread Bible by Rose Beranbaum is the kind of book for me. While many people swear by it, once I started paging through and reading some of the instructions, the book began to overwhelm me. Everything was a little too precious and intense, which had the effect of making me feel like I’d never be able to successfully produce anything from its pages. Perhaps once I have more confidence with bread I’ll be able to revisit this book with better results, but for now, it has been shelved.
The other book I purchased was by contrast, a revelation. Local Breads by Daniel Leader was full of beautiful, glossy photos of food I’d want to eat (and so would you). And it was written in a simple and straightforward enough manner that I began to feel that I could do this. I picked the first real recipe in the book because it says it’s the simplest, but it also happened to be one of the types of breads I wanted to master the most; Parisian daily bread (baguette). The recipe is clearly laid out, and while the process might be long, overall it is quite easy. There are several different intervals for rising, proofing and fermenting, but for the most part it’s pretty hands off. Towards the end you get to knead the dough a few dozen times with your hands, but the recipe can be achieved with 90% of the manual labour done by a stand mixer. About 4 hours later your loaves are ready to meet their toasty oven and steam sauna.
(more…)
Tags: Baking, Books, bread, Daniel Leader, Epicurious, levain, Local Breads, Rose Beranbaum, The Bread Bible
Posted in Baking, Books | 2 Comments »
