A few months ago, Kerrie and I were at Jungle Jim's (as we so frequently are) and I picked up a bottle of Rieme Traditional Limonade Artisanale. After we got home I stuck it in the cooler and sorta kinda forgot about it.



Jumping ahead, one night I made Steak Frites and we had this limonade with it. And let me say, it was freakishly amazing.

But wouldn't you know it, the next time we went grocery shopping there wasn't any left. I realized, thinking back, that it was a sale item on a display near the front door to promote a quick sale. I dragged Kerrie back to the French section of the store, but all they had was a sickly yellow lemon drink that I was NOT about to go near.

So the quest began, a mission if you will, to create my own version of this amazing drink. It was a sparkling beverage, very light and only slightly sweet. The beauty of this lemonade was that it wasn't sugary and "sticky" tasting. Amazingly enough, I came up with a recipe very quickly without much effort at all and it really came close. So close, in fact, that I'm not really worried about finding this product ever again.

---
Sparkling Limonade

1 Cup Sugar
1 1/2 Cup Water
1 Stalk Lemongrass, Chopped
1 T Lemon Juice
1 T Lime Juice

Sparkling Water

Combine Sugar and Water in a saucepan over medium heat. Bring to a simmer, stirring until sugar is dissolved. Remove from heat and add Lemongrass. When Syrup has cooled, strain into a bowl and discard lemongrass. Add Lemon and Lime juices, then refrigerate until ready for use. Mix with Sparkling water in a rocks glass.

* - I use a plain 'ole squeeze-bottle to store the syrup once it has cooled.
* - The ratio of Syrup to Sparkling water that I use is small. Maybe 1/10... I don't really measure, I just watch how much I pour into the glass.
---

Tomorrow, for Memorial Day, Kerrie and I have decided to watch the Die Hard Trilogy. It's just not a Holiday without Bruce Willis blowing some shit up.

I'd like to start by saying that this weekend was NOT a leisurely trip up north for the fun of it.

The truth of it all was that Kerrie's dad had a mild heart-attack and we (Kerrie, her sister and I) packed up and headed to Cleveland.

Her dad was being held at the Cleveland Clinic which, as you may or may not know, is within spitting distance of Little Italy. So on Saturday, while they were transferring Kerrie's dad out of the ICU to a regular room, the three of us drove over to Little Italy for lunch. Ah Little Italy... One of the few places in this world that continually entices me with it's treasures.

To start, Kerrie, Sue and I drove down one of the side-streets and walked up to Corbo's Bakery. Whenever I make the trek to Little Italy, I must get a batch of Corbo's Lemon Biscotti cookies. There is truly nothing like them. I have had success making my own before, but like all things we try to mimic - It was never the same.

Once, during a trip to Little Italy, I missed my window to get these ethereal cookies and just about went on a killing spree. yeah, they're THAT good.

After I made my mandatory stop at Corbo's, the three of us went to Mama Santa's for Pizza. Their Pizza, I will say with no remorse, is my favorite of anywhere I've ever been. The sauce is slightly sweet with the perfect tang, and the dough is crispy without being "thin". Mama Santa's never fails to please.


After our meal, which was (and always is) incredibly cheap, we walked down the street to One of the greatest bakeries on Earth: Presti's.

Truth be told, I've had full-on daydream\fantasies about working at Presti's, toiling away making all the amazing desserts, pastries, and breads they offer. Yeah, Presti's can actually get me to daydream about WANTING to work.

I enjoyed a perfectly frothy cappuccino and a chocolate covered canoli while Kerrie and her Sister split an amazing Cappuccino Cream Brownie.


The only bad thing about going to Little Italy is knowing that eventually you will have to leave. Eventually, we had to leave...

Kerrie and her sister seemed to enjoy their trip immensely, and we barely scratched the surface of what Little Italy has to offer. All the amazing restaurants and shops and, at some magical point in the summer, street festivals continually draw me in and I'm glad I got to share it with them. Now I'm not that crazy guy who rants about that neighborhood in Cleveland...

You know, I'm kind of a bitter cynic. I regularly refer to most of my co-workers as a bunch of junkies, ex-cons, hillbillies and single mothers. To lend my claims an air of credibility I now offer this pictorial review of my workspace...

My Locker...


My boss, after taking his position a little over a year ago, started referring to me as "Scarecrow". I originally thought it was a reference to the Batman character and because I'm gangely and like to fuck with peoples minds. Not so much... In truth it is because he thinks of me as a "protector of the food", much like a scarecrow in the field. My response:



Our glorious Catering Supervisor:

Umm...

Thank her for what?

Cartering? Does that have something to do with Habitat for Humanity?

Good advice...

Product loss:

Wow...

Guided instruction:

Sometimes the best instructions are the most obvious ones...


So there you have it. A day in the life of Me. Welcome to my particular slice of Hell's Rhubarb Pie...

It was a good weekend for me food-wise. As always, I am a firm believer in the most simple but good-quality food. Ultimately, that's the beauty of Jungle Jim's; anything I want, I can pretty much get. It acts as a muse, and I'm never running short on ideas...

Friday:

Steak Frites with Green Beans

Saturday:


Balsamic Chicken Sandwiches with Garlic Pepper Mayo & Arugala

Sunday:

BBQ Angus Burger with Tobacco Onions & Peppered Bacon


To round things out, Kerrie and I went to Graeters for breakfast yesterday then hit Sonic for dinner. Plus, this morning, we had Huevos con Chorizo for breakfast and I made a Focaccia Pizza with Pepperoni, Prosciutto, Capicolla, and Italian Sausage for dinner. I'm finally starting to feel the effects of the changing weather. It's consistently been warm here for about three weeks and that's helping me get back into "warm-weather" cooking. More grilling and lighter foods all around...

"It's gonna be a good summer..."
Robert DeNiro, Goodfellas


summerfoodiegroove:
Jane's Addiction - Ritual De Lo Habitual (Original artwork)
Backbeat - Soundtrack
Information Society - HACK
Wu Tang Clan - Wu Tang Iron Flag

I'm having a dilemma.

Recently, I told Kerrie that my goal for the summer was to avoid chain-restaurants at all costs. Ambitious? Sure. Earnest? You betcha. Utterly fucking stupid? Yeeeeaaahhh. That sounds more like it.

I realized, quite quickly, what I would be giving up. And almost immediately I started coming up with rules. Like: Coffee doesn't count. Yeah, don't even TRY and mess with my caffeine intake; It's not cool. And what about local chains? Like Larosa's Pizza or Graeters Ice Cream? Nuh-uh. I'll be stick with my favorite pizza thank you very much.

But it got worse. I started thinking about some bigger chains too. Like Sonic. I love Sonic. Sonic was MADE for the summer months. (Well, it was for those of us NOT in California...) And Cinnabon! I love Cinnamon Rolls, and Cinnabon is a classic.

So as you see, I backed myself into a corner. It sounded intense and brilliant when I said it but it was really just one of those "cool" trendy-BG-art-student statements that I should have kept to myself. Or, better yet, I never should have come up with it in the first place.

Yesterday, as I was walking into the apartment, I saw these two birds wandering around right under our patio.




Most people would find a soft spot in their heart for these birds and watch quietly or maybe even feed them some stale bread. The first thing that ran through MY mind, though, was: "I wonder if it would be really hard for me to produce my own foie gras..."






"Mr. Butts says: Eat A Dick Lettuce-Huggers!"
- Fark.com

I love a good Chicken Cordon Bleu.

Last week at work we made a batch for a special catering for the Prez, and after that I had the idea in my head to do my own. The batch we made was very simple: Pound the chicken, swiss cheese and ham, breading, and fry. Personally, I think if you're going to make something as simple, yet completely amazing, as this you really should go all out.

Then again, I forget that not everybody has immediate access to Jungle Jim's. Thankfully, Kerrie was very patient as I admired the many different varieties of cured meats, smoked cheeses, and freshly baked breads. When all was said and done, I opted to go with a nice Havarti cheese and some Soppresotta for my filling, two beautiful 6.oz chicken breasts - pounded flat, and a hunk of toasted Italian bread.






I prefer not to fry when I make this dish, nor do I use breading. I like seasoning and roasting the rolled chicken breast. Maybe it's just because I like this presentation, or possibly some sub-conscious health-pansy thing, but roasting works here.

Roasted Chicken Cordon Bleu
2 Chicken Breasts, boneless and skinless - pounded flat
4 pieces Sopprasotta
3 pieces Havarti
Paprika, salt, pepper
Arugala, chiffonade
Italian bread, sliced thick

Preheat oven to 450F.
Start by pounding chicken flat.
Fold or cut Havarti into triangle halves.
Place 2 pieces of Sopprasotta, then three triangles of Havarti on flattened chicken. Roll tighly (Like a jellyroll) and place in a square baking dish.
Season with Paprkia, slat, and pepper.
Roast, uncovered, for 30 to 40 minutes or until fully cooked and cheese is melted.
During the last five minutes of the roasting, toast the slices of Italian bread until nicely browned.
Assemble by placing one roll of chicken on top of a slice of toasted bread. Garnish with chiffonade Arugala.
---

We enjoyed a nice Pinot Grigio with this meal. Pinot Grigio, I have recently found, may very well be my favorite of all the white wines. Either that or I got really lucky with my selection last time I bought wine.

'Eh.

"Slash out the windows
The curtains are drawn
Lock down the compound
Bolt it and guard
Divided and conquered
Then booted to space
Beg for survival
On the planet of race
Come on!
..And Bring Us Bullets! Bullets!"
- Rocket from the Crypt, Bring Us Bullets

With the Winter finally winding down and a wet, cold Spring giving way to Summer, I decided to make a very nice Vietnamese dish called Pho.

Weather or not my version is/was a traditional "according to Hoyle" recipe remains in question. At work, I recently received a packet from Nestle Food Service entitled "A trip to SE Asia". Inside was the basic hodge podge of ideas mingled with advertisements for every Nestle product imaginable. Pho was the one thing that stood out for some reason. Perhaps it was the right combination of ingredients or the fact that it was fuck-cold and rainy all weekend. Either way, this delicious and simple broth was REALLY pleasing and exceptionally satisfying.

---
Beef Pho
2 qt Beef Broth
1 Yellow Onion, cut into quarters
1 large piece ginger, peeled and cut into cubes
2 Shallots, peeled and cut into quarters
1 Parsnip, peeled and cut with center removed
1 Cinnamon Stick
2-3 tsp. Fish Sauce

3 .oz wild mushrooms
8 .oz braised beef strips\cubes
1 package Rice Stick Noodles\Bahn Pho
1 bunch Scallions, cut on bias

1 Red Pepper, julienned and charred
2 .oz Bean Sprouts, rinsed well
1 Lime, cut into 4 wedges
2-3 leaves Thai Basil, chiffonade

Bring beef broth to a gentle simmer in a large pot.
While broth is warming, char Yellow Onion, Ginger, and shallots over grill.
When broth is at a simmer, add charred vegetables and Parsnip. Allow to steep for 25 minutes.
Add Cinnamon and Fish Sauce, steep for 5 more minutes.
Strain and keep warm while assembling bowls and garnish.

In each bowl, place rice noodles (cooked according to package instructions), then beef, then mushrooms and top with warm broth and scallions.

On small plates, artistically arrange Red Pepper, sprouts, lime, and basil. Serve as garnish with Broth.
---





Kerrie and I enjoyed this dish with a nice Sauvignon Blanc and Eddie Murphy's "Delirious". Still as funny today, at is was 25 years ago. Wait, what? 25 Years?

Oh no...




vietnamesesoupgroove
Curtis Mayfield - Superfly
The Doors - The End
Iggy & The Stooges - No Fun
Beastie Boys - So What Cha Want?
The Misfits - Die Monster Die
Rolling Stones - Street Fightin' Man

I've been feeling a bit, I dunno, retro lately.

I've been playing a lot of NES and SNES, and now with Troy pulling VBBS out of the mothballs, I've been taken back to a time when all I was worried about was... well... Nothing.

It was a time when I had the stamina to stay up till 2:00 or 3:00 in the morning and not miss a beat the next day. It was a time when I worked for the Big M. Yeah, delivering Pizzas may not have been the most glam job I ever held, but it definitely made me gobs of money. I remember, quite fondly, buying one of the first 14.4 modems that came out and always going to Charlie's or Ralphie's for obligatory late-lunch after School let out.

But, if one thing about my past is certain, I have a psychotic LOVE/HATE relationship with Pizzas. I have learned a lot of dirty little secrets about the franchise-pizza industry (From dumpster diving for receipts from competitors to making hundreds upon hundreds of pounds of pizza dough every day.) and, God help me, it's not all bad.

I have found, as I've gotten older, that I really do have an affection for a good Pizza. One with a fluffy crust, a slightly sweet sauce, various cheeses, and a fuck-load of pork piled on top. I have also found, as I've gotten older, that I shiver every time I walk into a pizzeria - knowing I did some shady shit for my former boss.

Nonetheless, I have moved on and found my own semi-corporate/semi-artisan formula for making pizzas. Check it:











I make a basic foccacia dough using Kerrie's bread maker, then I use Italian sausage, Cappicola, and Pepperoni for toppings. I like to finish it off with Provolone and a cheese mix of Mozzarella, Jack, and Parmesan.

Even now, 13 years later, I still love to make and eat a good pizza. There is something about a heavy pie and a nice bottle of red table wine that makes a night feel complete.

"Oh, don't tell me about Family Suffering. My son went down to Earth once. I don't know what you people did to him, but he hasn't been the same since..."
- God, from The Simpsons




Happy Easter Folks!

The past few weeks have disappeared in a whirlwind of work, sleep, more work and a few good foodie moments here and there.

One of the better moments was making Balsamic Chicken Sandwiches for dinner last week. The best Balsamic-Chix-Sand I've ever had is at Cohen & Cooke in Bowling Green. Many days, Jeb and I would go over to Cohen & Cooke and have that Sandwich before we would work on music. It was something of a muse.

But now I'm 180 miles south and don't have immediate access to such things, so I came up with my own.

Balsamic Chicken Sandwiches

2 Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breasts
1/8 Cup White Wine
1/4 Cup Balsamic Vinegar
1 T Dijon Mustard
1/2 t Onion Powder
1 Clove Minced Garlic
1/2 T Sugar
1 t Worcestershire sauce
1/2 t Dry Mustard
1/2 t cracked Black Pepper

Wash and dry chicken, then place in a zip-lock bag.
Combine all other ingredients, then pour into bag over chicken.
Seal bag and refrigerate overnight.

---

This is a great recipe I for grilling and then served on fresh baked Focaccia with some Saffron Mayo.




troysVBBSgroove:
Ned's Atomic Dustbin - Saturday Night
Soup Dragons - Running Wild
D.N.A. & Suzanne Vega - Tom's Diner
Information Society - Mirrorshades
Nirvana - Dive
INXS - Not Enough Time
Sweet - Fox on the Run


Recently, Kerrie entered a contest using Fliptrack and made a nifty slide show. Check it out, yo...

Truth be told, I love St. Patrick's Day. No, I'm not Catholic and no... I'm not Irish. But hey, who doesn't love a boiled meal accompanied by lots of beer and whiskey?

From my short stay in Bowling Green, I witnessed some amazingly asinine behavior from the local college students and some great foodie moments from both my own Kitchen and the always wonderful Trotters Tavern.

Perhaps one of the greatest moments was when, after a hearty meal of eggs, rashers and whiskey at Trotters, a very drunk young man came up to Kerrie and I and asked if I was going to finish my food. After I replied with a lengthy Nooooo... he just snatched up a piece of pork and stumbled out the front door.

Or, for those keeping track, there was that one St. Patrick's Day where I made dinner and told guests to bring some good beer. One of which showed up with a 24-pack of Natty Light. (Bonus: She told me I could keep the rest for, you know, whatever!)

Skipping forward, I wanted to have a big 'ole St. Paddy's Day meal seeing as it fell on a Saturday this year. So I did.

Kerrie and I started the day by heading up to the University for a breakfast catering I had to assemble, the jumped over to the College Hill Coffee Company for a breakfast of our own. After a nice Au Lait and a Cinnamon Belgium Waffle, we went and got groceries.

The remainder of the day was filled with drinking and cooking and baking. I started by making a great Irish Soda bread, from a recipe my mom gave me at Christmas. The bread, by the way, turned out so nice. Crusty on the outside and fluffy and light on the inside.

My next task was to get my special Corned Beef going, then bake off a Chocolate Stout Cake. Corned beef, incidentally, is not something I crave often but IS something I truly do love. (If made well...)

I made my first Corned Beef a few years ago and it was amazing. Lots of people around, drinking and eating and listening to bagpipes on the Hi-Fi. It was a great night, and I scored a case of Natty Light. (Sniff Sniff - smell that? That was Sarcasm...)

So to bring back the glory of St. Patrick's Days which have past, I made my version of Corned Beef. And it goes a little sumptin' like this:

---

Corned Beef

Serves 2
(3 Hours Cooking Time, Plus prep)

2-3 Pound beef brisket
48 .oz Killian’s Irish Red (4 Bottles)
¼ cup Orange Juice
1 Orange
25 Cloves
1 T Olive Oil
1 t Dry Mustard
1 t Caraway Seed
¼ t Thyme
1 T Whole Black Peppercorns

2 Carrots, peeled, cut and turned
3 Red Potatoes, cut into quarters
2 Onions, peeled and quartered

Brussels Sprouts
1 T Butter

Start by washing off the beef brisket and then set aside.

Take the cloves and stud the orange all the way around. (You may actually need more or less cloves depending on the size of the orange.)

In a large heavy pot, pour in olive oil then add the brisket, the orange, and the Killian’s and the orange juice. (You may need to add some cold water to make sure the liquid covers the meat and the orange.) Turn on the heat and bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer.

Add the mustard, caraway, thyme and peppercorns. Simmer gently for 2 ½ hours.

At the end of the 2½ hours, add the carrots, red potatoes, and the onions. Cook for a ½ hour longer.

Once cooked, remove the brisket from the liquid and set aside to rest for 5 minutes. During this time, quickly cook the Brussels sprouts in rapidly boiling salted water for 3-4 minutes. Drain and return to pan, then toss with butter.

Serve Corned Beef in slices with a spoon full of vegetables and Brussels sprouts.

---

The rest of the evening rounded out with a Chocolate Stout Cake, more drinkin' and Van Morrison. And, God help me, I 'm already looking forward to the next one. (Which is on a Monday. Boy, that'll suck for DinnerRoll on Tuesday the 18'Th...)










stpaddysgroove:
Van Morrison - Into the Mystic
Van Morrison - Gloria
Van Morrison - Tupelo Honey
Van Morrison - Crazy Love
Van Morrison - Brand New Day
Sinead O'Connor - Make Me A Channel of Your Peace
The Pogues - Haunted


"You have to be careful with that demographic. They'll come at you like a whirling Dervish, all fists and elbows. You'll be saying "Stop! Stop! Stop!" and all they'll hear is "Who wants cake?" And they all want cake."
- From Fark.com, on the use of the term "retard"

You got to pick out every stitch...
Must be the season of the witch...
- Donovan


This morning was a morning of catering's, coffee and emo-band-names.

For those not in "the know", there used to be a pretty amusing game we all used to play called Emo-Band-Names. The object? Simply throw together seemly random words to make useless but oh-so-deep-and-moody Emo Band Names.
Baxter was the previous champ with the title Butter Knife Bent Backwards, but this morning I think I found a topper.

But before we get to that, let me fill you in on my morning. As of late, I've become the go-to guy for all manner of catering gigs. And, this morning, there were two for me to knock out. At 8:30 AM there was pastry and coffee for 25. Being the sleaze I am, I set everything up yesterday so all I had to do today was clock-in, drop off the goods, and go to Sitwells for coffee.

Kerrie came with me this morning so as to enjoy the Sitwell's breakfast menu (New York Egg Sandwich, yo!) and a few cups of their passable coffee. After settling into a cozy table far in the back, I noticed a table with five nurses enjoying their 8:45am round of beers. Sure they COULD have just gotten off a brutal 3'rd shift, or they could have been enjoying a nice eye-opener before strolling into work. Either way, they gave me my new submission for the game of Emo-Band-Names:

Drunken Nurses at the Coffee House

After realizing that this is a game that may never truly end, I headed back to work to drop off my second catering order and clock out. Good Times baby, goooood times...

Beef Bourgignon

1 lb. Stew Beef
Salt & Pepper
2 Small Onions
2 T Flour
1 Cup Dry Red Wine
1 Cup Baby Carrots
3 Cloves Garlic
1 T Herbs du Provence

In a bowl, generously season beef with salt and pepper, set aside until called for.
Thinly slice onions and place in a bowl. Set aside until called for.
Cut the baby carrots to your preference. (I like to cut them down the length of the carrot for presentation purposes.) Smash the three cloves of garlic and place in bowl with carrots.

In a heavy stock pot (Calphalon bay-bee!) heat 2 or 3 Tablespoons of olive oil over medium-high heat. When hot, but not smoking, sear off all the beef in batches. The meat should be nicely browned on all sides. Remove the meat from the pot and set aside. Lower the heat down to medium and add the onions. Cook until the onions are soft and golden brown, then sprinkle with the flour. Continue cooking until all the flour has been incorporated, then add the red wine. Bring the wine to a boil, scraping up all of the fond from the bottom of the pot.

Return the meat to the pot, then add the carrots, garlic, and Herbs du Provence. Add roughly 2 Quarts of water (8 Cups for those of you from Lakota) to the pot and bring back to a boil, then reduce to a simmer and cook for about 2 hours or until the meat is tender enough to easily break with a fork. Season with salt and pepper if needed.

Tip: Check the pot every 15 minutes or so and give a good stir to prevent scorching.

---

"...and I don't give a damn about my Bad Reputation!"
- Joan Jett

"We should be fucking DEAD my friend!"
- Samuel L. Jackson to John Travolta, Pulp Fiction

For those of you who don't read Kerrie's blog, let me grace you with my hip world view...

Thursday of last week was messed up. We here in Cinci went through two day fisting of a snow "event". Snow, Ice, Freezing rain, and more snow. Amusingly enough, it was nowhere NEAR as bad as the weather up in NW Ohio gets. But with all the hills and a much bigger population down here, things get scary - QUICK.

Thursday was the break in the crappiness though. It was sunny out. Aside from the low wind chill, it was a nice day. So I went to work...

But by the end of my day, I just wanted to go home. I was super tired and I just didn't care.

I got in the car. I merged onto 75N. I headed home.

As I got near Sharonville, I noticed a Semi with a massive cloud of snow blowing off the roof of his truck. I referred to him as a "dumbass" and got ready to merge over to the Right so as to get onto 275, and then it happened...

In less than a second, I saw a sheet of ice come off of the Semi's roof and fly directly at me. And by Me I do mean ME. It hit the hood of the car and slammed into the windshield - directly at eye level. MY eye level.






The Ice shattered into a millions pieces and left the windshield cracked out to all four corners. Amazingly, I kept driving without losing control, and even managed to get the trucks info written down. I just kept driving...

So, for the last few days, I keep thinking of that famous quote from Pulp fiction. And I can't help but wonder: What if that had been metal? Or a piece of rock? Or a hunk of wood?

Personally, I'm just glad I'm alive. But on a deeper level I've started looking, for some reason, at the food I'm cooking so much more intently. Last night I made Beef Bourgignon with meticulous attention to detail. It was tender, dark, thick, and flavorful. Tonight, after dinner? Kerrie and I had Chianti Classico and Milk Chocolate for dessert. It was so smooth and warming... It's sad that it took a freek-moment on the highway to get me to this level of attention, but hey... By any means necessary, huh?

neardeathgroove:
Massive Attack - Protection
Avalanches - Frontier Psychiatrist
Pretenders - 2000 Miles
Donovan - Catch the wind

Oh Mr. Bourdain... You have proven once again why you are my hero. And on Michael Ruhlman's blog nonetheless!

Anthony Bourdain: Guestblogger!

"World, the time has come to: DON'T HOLD BACK!"
- Chemical Brothers & Q-Tip


The new year is in full swing and things, obviously, haven't changed. So, as usual, it's up to me to make the world a better place through my borderline-prophetic presence.

I've thought about my impending Pastry career. I've thought about working out more. Hell, I've even thought about growing up a little and maybe try doing things the right way rather than my preferred method of SYSTEM D. I'm actually VERY fond of Le Systeme D, it's just one of those things cooks DO weather they call it by name or not.

One of my favorite moves when it comes to System D is cooking off chicken breasts in boiling water and then dropping them in a bucket of barbecue sauce. When it comes time for service, they are quickly marked on grill and pushed onto, eager, waiting plates.

I can hear it, I can feel it... That gasp of contempt from the culinary elite. Those people who SWEAR they never cut corners. These are, mostly likely, the same people who tried to convince their peers that they had a BF\GF in Canada when they were in grade school.

Nonetheless, I take pride in my work. My food is not just edible, it's what most people would consider good. And yes, just about every person I have ever cooked for has been subject to the infamous System D.

Ha ha suckers...

So as the Year moves on, so will I. Pastry, I have found, is not just a science. It is a meticulous endeavor that is utterly exacting. THAT, I would like to say, is not my forte. Which, ironically, is odd seeing as I am a very patient person. I guess I can just blame it on too much Techno and Rock 'n Roll.

\m/


systemDgroove:
Chemical Brothers & Q-Tip - Galvanize
Fingathing - Superhero Music
Oakenfold & Brittany Murphy - Faster Kill Pussycat
Public Enemy - Sophisticated Bitch
Sex Pistols - New York

Sometimes I feel bad when I get gifts from people and don't exactly use them the way they are intended.

Example...

For Christmas, Sue, Greg, & Claire got us a Chocolate Fondue set. It's a nice little set with a ceramic bowl and stand. It's the perfect size too, just right for two people.

But being that it's still so close to the Holidays, there is a ton of chocolate and other goodies we're slowly chipping away at - so Chocolate Fondue hasn't happened yet. It will, I assure you, just not yet...

What has happened, though, is a leisurely Sunday dinner featuring Double Stacked Cajun Sliders with Chipotle Mayo & Waffle Cut Garlic Fries with Cheese Fondue. Check it...






Oooh yeah. Yumm-aye!