Toys!

Xbox 360. A new bike. A laptop computer. Cold, hard, cash. A Sega Saturn.

These are all things I've asked foraround Christmastime past years. Some of them have worked out well (cash, Xbox360) and some of them not so well (damn my endless loyalty to Sega. I blame Sonic.)

But this time around I asked for something(s) that are not only in completely different leagues from my previous requests, but are guaranteed to supply endless amounts of happiness.

First up is the most important: a food mill. Potato mashers are sooooooo mid 90s. You want the silky consistency of instant mashed potatoes with the flavor and texture of yukon golds, and there's really only one option: a food mill. It's also the ideal way to make gnocchi (coming later), juice pomegranate seeds, and remove the seeds and pulp from tomatoes. Combined with my new chinois, everything I make will finally have exactly the right consistency. I had never actually seen a chinois in action, but decided to give it its first go by making a mirepoix for my old barbeque sauce recipe and leaving in the onions, parsnips, carrots, and celery as the sauce simmered. Then, finally pushed it through the chinois and enjoyed the smoothest, richest barbeque sauce I've ever made. Awesome.

I decided a spice grinder would be in order, since whole spices last longer than ones you buy pre-ground. Since I like to keep a couple score of spices on hand at any given time (but usually take about a year to go through them) it seemed a logical choice. It got its first use when I ground whole coriander seeds to make a crust for the seared ahi tuna I made last week. The flavor difference: worlds apart. I'm not sure if there will be a next time that I'll use pre-ground spices. Yow.

If you love wine as much as I do (unlikely) you'll understand why I so desperately wanted a decanter. Nuff said, really. It gets its first test with a bottle of new bottle of Malbec I'm pretty excited to open.

I'm still a way aways from my first purchase of truffles, but I have been pretty interested in learning how to use their flavor. To that end, truffle oil works as a good substitute. I've only used it thus far drizzled on fries, but I definitely hope to use it with proteins and salads in very soon. Mmmmm. Truffffflleeessss.....

And finally, the simplest of my Christmas gifts: a $5 patch of cheesecloth that can add an extra layer of smoothness to any soups or sauces, can go towards enclosing a bouquet garni, or give me my first experience using tomato water. While wikipedia says I can also use it for making my own cheeses or handheld torches and flaming arrows, these uses are slightly less likely.

But I'll keep you posted.

The Boy Who Cried Wolf?

Ok, no, but seriously. This has gotten totally and completely out of hand. Two months without a post? And I don't even have any good excuses. I have a digital camera. I'm cooking like a madman. Geez, for 2.5 weeks of that I was at home playing video games and going out dancing every night. I couldn't pay y'all even a little attention?

Especially since, as could only be expected, my food is getting better and better. You'd think I would be more, not less interested in talking about my food that is better tasting and more interesting than the stuff I started with nearly a year ago. And of course, I'm pretty sure that each of that last few posts have contained promises to write more. I seriously need to stop crying wolf and put up some substantive content.

In fact, there is so very much to talk about, I can't even begin to think about putting it all in one post. We've got:

• Christmas presents. Yes, while my friends were asking for xboxes and clothes and money and whatnot, I was asking for...truffle oil. Among other fun things.
• Thanksgiving dinner. I am indeed that far behind on my updates. But no use in letting 9 courses of deliciousness go unaccounted for. (Well, honestly, 8 courses and some chickpeas gone horribly wrong)
  
• Christmas Dinner. While not quite as insane as Thanksgiving, it was a quality little meal worth at least half a post.
• New Years Dinner. My first chance to use my new cooking toys. And oh did I use them. Great stuff here. Plus, T experiments with prime rib and horseradish.
• Other assorted meals: a beef tenderloin preparation my mother called "the best steak she's ever had." (She also tells me I'm cool.) Pan-seared Ahi Tuna with a wasabi soy vinaigrette, a sweet potato cheesecake and spice-poached grapes in a cheesy bell bepper cup for the office holiday party, a cranberry risotto, truffled french fries, my first successful attempt at gnocchi, how I forgot how to cook ribs, and Why I should listen to my boss about Restaurant Week.

Of course, I'm sure I'm missing quite a bit. But I know I need to start catching up before I really start to play with all my new toys. Plus, a new cheesecake preparation is in the works and my first dinner party since mid-August. What do you get when you combine a new television, T, and the Super Bowl? I still haven't figured it out yet, but I'm ripe for suggestions!

So, you should start reading again. For real! I'll make it my New Years Resolution to post regularly, at least until I forget again. Peaces!

Pictures!!!

Yes, indeed. My first blog with actual pictures in months. And I must say, I've made some serious improvements in those few months.

Here is yesterday's promised recount of what ended up being a rather exceptional meal at BFF Christine's spot in the beautiful North Druid Hills/Briarcliff area of the Hotlanta.

The white asparagus was prepared as mentioned yesterday, braised in Guinness and finished in butter on the stovetop The chorizo is very simply roasted, but a perfect accompaniment to the pomegranate-cinnamon lacquered duck that had gotten a dry rub of tarragon, thyme, garlic, salt, and pepper. Served that over some sauteed bok choy with brown sugar and vinegar.

The white chocolate risotto got a white chocolate ganache that was added to arborio rice cooked in milk, cream, sugar, a split and scraped vanilla bean, and a couple of cinnamon sticks. This was so good I'm pretty sure any new version of the Bible would heavily restrict its consumption.

Let's Be Fair

I have the attention span of a fruit fly with ADD.

No more excuses, really--I have a shiny new (aka my parents old) digital camera that is (probably) fully functional. And I've made quite a few brand new dishes in the past couple of months. But the blog has been mysteriously quiet. Oops.

But it really wouldn't be right to let Thanksgiving pass by without a shout out to all of my 13 readers. Yes, it was 11 before, but apparently Auntie Bene and sig. o. Art drop in every now and then. Hi Ma! Besides, I couldn't let my 9 courses of Thanksgiving go by without even a mention, right?

But before I hop into all that, there have certainly been some recent noteworthy dishes prepped recently, at least two of which were inspired by my recently chronicled trip to Perilla in NYC. And an absolute failure (I mean, I was due...) inspired by my trip to Mesa Grill in NYC.

Perilla taught me that a micro salad on top of a well cooked protein topped with shaved parmegiano reggiano is almost always fantastic. So New Friend Elissa's drop into the apartment gave me an excuse to give it a shot with a preparation of New York strip topped with miso. With a micro salad of shaved yellow bell pepper and frissee and a sauce of oyster mushrooms, honey, and balsamic vinegar, the dish was a perfect main course. It had been preceded by a bouillon of wild mushrooms (cremini, chantrelle and shiitake) topped with a seared leg of duck. And it was followed by sliced bosce pears drizzled with a mint chocolate sauce. I was happy.

Also got to make dinner for The Roommates+TGeggs+Visitor/DC Newcomer Jillian--This time, the protein was ribeyes, the sauce was my basic white wine mushroom sauce with sauteed onions, and the micro salad was arugula and parm. Unfortunately, TGeggs had requested asparagus. I had never made asparagus. I don't like asparagus. Not one bit. But I got this idea to braise the asparagus in beer and then finish them on the stovetop with duck fat I had collected from previous preparations of duck. So. Good. If I can always have my asparagus poached in duck fat I'll eat it forever.

Finally, I think I got called in as a consultant/caterer for Intern Elliott's house party. Honestly, I wasn't even sure I was going to this party--it's tough to get me anywhere out on a Saturday night that doesn't involve hip hop+dancing of some sort. But then he asked me to cook something for the party--my response: "Psh, I ain't got that kinda bling" or some variation of such. His response: "Just make a menu--I'll pick up the food."

.....

He's lucky I didn't try out my white truffle risotto with gulf shrimp fondue recipe I've been eyeing. Or the seared foie gras. Heck, I didn't even go with the tempting Chilean Sea Bass or beef tenderloin. Nah, I tried to keep it on the cheap side...plus, lots of vegetarians to cook for. New Friend Heather, for instance, might have been slightly irritated with a more...typical..night of cooking (see: poaching asparagus in duck fat). Threw together my fried bell peppers with mozarella, except tried a mango and roasted poblano salsa on top. Also some brown sugar roasted butternut squash with rosemary, an onion soubise, and salmon two ways: pan seared and with a honey balsamic glaze. Some slight execution problems with the soubise and the pan seared salmon (overcooked) but overall a good night.


Tomorrow: cooking in Atlanta. See, when Tahir takes vacay, he wants nothing more than to cook. A lot. So in just one week, we've done a wild mushroom risotto for Pops, pan seared Chilean sea bass for Moms, veggie quesadillas for Pops, chicken nachos for Moms, pomegranate-cinnamon glazed duck legs, white asparagus (same prep as above, except butter instead of duck fat. Yes, the duck fat makes a difference), and roasted chorizo for my ATLiens, a sinfully divine white chocolate risotto also for my ATLiens and, oh, yeah. 9 courses of Thanksgiving:

Deep fried turkey (with my injected marinade and dry rub)
Whiskey and Wildflower Honey Glazed Sweet Potatoes
Butternut Squash and Turnip Gratin
Mint Haricots Verts with Toasted Pine Nuts
Watercress, Blood Orange, and Apple Salad with a lime vinaigrette
Spicy Fried Chickpeas (absolute disaster)
Pineapple, Mango, and Roasted Poblano Salsa
Spicy Herbed Mixed Nuts (That's what she said? No? Anyone?)
Pumpkin Cheesecake with freshly whipped cream
Peach Cobbler

Oh, and a Pomegranate-Ginger Mimosa for toasting.

Thanks to everyone who reads this blog, thanks to all my friends for being spectacular--y'all really are my love, for real. Thanks to God for blessing after blessing and the talent to be able to figure out the difference between a gratin and a hole in the wall. Thanks to the fam for enduring my obsessions year after year (next year this time: skydiving!......syke!). And thanks to everyone who eats my food and gives me feedback.

Nothin but love!

Hit the Road, Jack

I spent most of this past week on the road dreaming of recipes, but really only able to eat out. My only decent chance at a meal was at a spot in Philly called Alfa.

While the chef's credentials seemed impressive enough (he worked underneath Iron Chef Masaharu Morimoto), my first impression of the restaurant was that of one that was simply trying too hard. A glance at their website, which reads more like that of the city's newest club hotspot, should give you an idea of why I agree.

For instance, the "Bruschetta Trio of tomato onion marmalade and cambozola cheese, spiced walnuts and fig jam, and wild mushroom and herbed cheese" tasted just as confusing as it sounded. And by "confusing" I mean "bad."

I had a pepper crusted scallop with truffled mashed potato, a saffron infused orange jus, crisped mixed cheese, and a sauteed baby carrot. The only of those adjectives that happenned to be accurate were "crisped" and "sauteed." I know truffled and I know saffron and I can tell you that neither of those showed up in any substantive way on this plate. While the scallop was indeed cooked perfectly, the cheese was overpowering, and the mashed potato was nothing I couldn't have made at home. The orange jus was the only thing that made the plate edible from beginning to end.

And since I only got three scallops with mild additions, I wasn't nearly full at the end of my $17 entree. So I ordered some $6 sweet potato and russet potato french fries. These were actually pretty good, although inconsistent from fry to fry.

I will say, the martini (or three) I had was absolutely fantastic. Vodka, apple pucker, pomegranate juice, and a touch of cinnamon. Why do all my favorite martinis always end up pink??

More...

It really has been a long time--I forgot about a good number of other experiments from the last couple of months.

• Ceviche Summer Rolls: These were...interesting. I'll start by saying I think I have a good idea here, but they weren't as well executed as I would have liked. I used bay scallops, shrimp, avocado, rice noodles, and a bit of napa cabbage. The ceviche was lime juice, olive oil, cayenne, and cumin. The scallops needed more time, and the avocado wasn't exactly ripe. And they don't keep well overnight. This is worth a second look, it needs something to counter the acidity of the ceviche. All that being said, we ate them all. Can't complain too much about that...
• A Bit of Vegetarian Fare: This one's for you, pops. My girl Rachele doesn't eat none of that meat stuff, but I wasn't gonna let that stop me. Roasted Zucchini with just a bit of olive oil, kosher salt, and black pepper goes fantastic with a drizzle of sweet soy reduction of soy sauce, garlic, brown sugar, and black pepper. Served it with a mushroom and three cheese risotto topped with slices of portobello mushrooms blanched in white wine and vinegar and seasoned with salt. I have to be honest--didn't miss the meat in this dish at all.

Tomorrow Alyse and I are getting together to cook, so you should get another update pretty soon. Stay tuned!

Two and a Half Months

Wow, so I've really let myself go...

The last few months have been, as always, the stuff wild rides are made of. A couple of trips to New York, broken televisions and laptops, travel for work, dance rehearsals and performances...it just wouldn't be my life if it weren't non-stop.

But yes, I did have some time for a little food here and there.

• Trip to New York, Episode 1: So during the season of Next Food Network Star, I became friends on MySpace with the show's profile. During one of my weekly logins to MySpace, I noticed a bulletin for an open casting call in NYC. So I did it--headed up to NYC for just one day, waited in line for 5 hours, and met with the Casting Director. How did it go? Well, how could I really say? I felt charming enough--she laughed, and I was called "cute" twice. She also said my food sounded "interesting." But, of course, there were 150 other people just at this call. So don't think you'll catch me holding my breath. It was super fun, though, and I met some really cool peoples.
• T discovers Chilean Sea Bass: I've definitely found my favorite new ingredient--one of many seemingly common proteins/ingredients I've neither eaten nor cooked...at least until about a month ago. Chilean Sea Bass was made to be pan seared/blackened, and serving it over a risotto is just fantastical. Speaking of seafood, I finally rocked out some Maryland Blue Crabs. Now, the crabs were good--the stock I made from the crabs is better. If only I could figure out exactly what to do with it...
• T has a new favorite wine of all time: Alain Corcina's 2005 Pinot Noir from Bourgogne. Inexpensive+phenomenal.
• Halo 3. Xbox Live. Nuff Said.
• T butchers a duck: Well, not a live duck. But figured out yesterday how to quarter a whole duck from Whole Foods. Removed the breasts and the skin and cooked the skinless breasts faux sous vide--tightly wrapped it in plastic wrap with some soy sauce, liquid smoke, salt, pepper, rosemary, and rice wine vinegar and then poached for about a half hour in steaming, but not simmering water. Then took the breasts out, seared them on each side for just a minute or two Took the skin off the duck and crisped it in some butter and olive oil, and made a sauce of concord grapes, white wine, allspice, and bay leaves. Served the duck over rainbow chard, topped with the crisped duck skin, the grape sauce, and a sprinkle of pomegranate seeds. See Nat? Don't you ever claim I don't cook for you...
• Almost forgot, the first course yesterday was a salad of frissee, fennel, snow crab meat, and pan-fried tilapia dressed in a bit of butter and lemon juice and served in half a yellow bell pepper. A nice, clean first course. Nothing life changing, but a wonderful summer dish. Sigh, yes. I still wish/think it's summer.
• And now, one more stock goes into my freezer/fridge--Took the rest of the duck meat and bones aside from the drumsticks, thighs, etc., and made a stock over the last 24 hours or so. Alyse has suggested using it as a base for some sauces or stews. Now that's some cold weather for ya.
• Visiting NYC, Episode 2: Decided to make my annual NYC vacay over Columbus Day weekend, and made it chock full of good food. First, I visited Bobby Flay's Mesa Grill for lunch with my boy Josh. I ordered this 16-spice chicken that was, bar-none, the best preparation of chicken I have ever tasted. Yes, even better than this. I also ate at Perilla, the restaurant run by Harold Dieterele, who won the first episode of Top Chef. Top notch meal here, too. I had pork belly with porcini mushrooms and a gastrique that was absolutely out of this world, and Wild Boar Milanese with arugula and shaved parmesan for my main course. The dessert was a peanut butter parfair with chocolate shortbread and a raspberry sorbet--described as an upscale play on a peanut butter and jelly sandwhich. Best PB&J everrrrr.

I'm feeling a bit gourmet again. And my mom is sending me the family's olddddd digital camera, so hopefully I'll be back on the block soon.

The blog is back...sexy sexy.

Oh ohhh!