Hey man, where'd ya get that lotion?

The past few weeks have made things a little tight. No more Mondays of starting a big pot of Demi Glace at noon and working on it for hours upon hours, or the classic Thursday where I put a chicken or a hunk of pork in the oven and roast it for 6 hours over a low heat.

No, those days are gone. I know I have Saturdays and Sundays to be in the kitchen, but there are other things to do. Like sleeping in, cleaning, grocery shopping, church, or just plain slacking off...

On the other hand, less time is NO excuse for me not to create some excellent meals. They just need to be less labor intensive. For example, one night a week now Kerrie and I do Salads for dinner. Last week we did Taco Salad (with my homemade Achiote seasoning) and the week before that I made Caesar Salads with toasted baguettes and homemade dressing. This week meessa thinks I'm going to make a salad of Grilled steak, tossed greens, apples and gorgonzola cheese.

Also, with the fall season upon us, I need to stock up the pantry with plenty of the usual provisions: Pasta, canned tomatoes, wheat flour, oats... The nice thing about fall is that comfort food is so much more enticing. Cooking and prep work seem less arduous and more fulfilling. Plus, a cup of steamy hot chocolate always tastes better when there is snow falling right in front of you.

I guess that's why, as a food baddie, I'm so torn about the seasons. I actually like the changing of the seasons, but I would NOT mind living on the west coast where it's "nice" pretty much all the time. (I'd love to be down in Ocean Beach at Your Mama's Mug right about now...)

This past week, Kerrie and I have had the pleasure of a roaring fire in the fire place almost every night. Last week we had Beignets and hot Cafe au Laits for breakfast on Saturday, and a nice Wine & Cheese plate on the Friday before. (Pears stuffed with Gorgonzola, Baked Brie, Sharp Cheddar, Provolone, and a bottle of CabSav)

I guess, and this is pretty obvious, there is food for every season. This week I'm looking forward to roasting squash then stuffing it into a crepe with fennel sausage, or maybe another round of that amazing Roasted Pork with Cider.

Tomorrow: Spinach and Spicy Sausage Lasagne. Mmm Mmm Good MuhFuh...




IggyPoppaGroove:
Lust for Life
No Fun
Some Weird Sin
Search and Destroy
I wanna be your Dog

Ain't life a mystery?

I'm very much looking forward to Saturday morning.

My new Job, however awful 5:30AM may be, does not run service on Saturdays or Sundays. (Weekends OFF!) So every Saturday Kerrie and I go an get a nice leisurely breakfast at one of a few places:

1.) Bee's Donuts. Amazingly perfect Donuts made very close to our apartment. None I have ever had anywhere can compare.

2.) Cinnabon. Best cinnamon rolls ever...

3.) Brugger's Bagels. I really dig their Asiago Bagels.

But this week Kerrie and I picked up some things for breakfast at Jungle Jim's. Specifically: Cafe Du Monde Beignet Mix and Chicory Coffee.




Baxter and I once made Beignet's right after he came back from New Orleans, and my mom -ages ago- brought me a can of Chicory Coffee back from the French Market. In my head, there are few things better for breakfast than a freshly fried beignet and a Cafe au Lait. After a full work-week of pates, Forcemeats, savory mousees and a bunch of other shit normal people don't eat, this is a perfect way to start the weekend.

Also, congrats to Cafe Du Monde who re-opened to the public on Wednesday the 19'th.
Cafe Du Monde

aulaitgroove
Bad Religion - 21'st Century Digital Boy
Elvis - C'mon Everybody
Crystal Method - Comin' Back
Violent Femmes - Add It Up

There goes my baby...

Happy Birthday Kerrie!

Kerrie celebrates her birthday today, and to celebrate the Trifecta of relationship events (Oct 2'nd = Anniversary, Oct 15'th = Sweetest Day, Oct 16'th = Birffday) we had a nice picnic at Winton Woods for lunch yesterday, Steaks au Poivre for dinner, Za's for lunch today, and Sitwells for a little quality coffee and cider action...

Happy Birthday Boo!

So tired, Tired of Waiting...

Saturday night, Kerrie and I went to see Waiting...

I will openly admit that I have been eagerly awaiting the release of this movie since I first saw it's preview several months ago. I, someone who's had to work for dirt wages in the shittiest of dive restaurants, thought this movie was hilarious.

It's a disgusting, over-the-top, gross-out kind of movie and I loved every minute of it. For those of you who don't know, the vast majority of commercial kitchens are not manned by White Coat Re-Re's yelling out things like BAM! and so forth... There are some mean, evil, dark and disturbing people back there folks, and this movie portrayed them in a basic, unfiltered light.

Kerrie made an interesting point, that this was the Food Service equivalent of Office Space. Almost... Office Space is a classic movie, but one that's just a lot of fun. The things that happen in OF never happen in real life. The things that happen in Waiting... do. They REALLY do...

Talking back to managers.
Sex in bathrooms, walk-ins, and occasionally on The Line.
Rampant drug use.
Disregard for food and stupid people.
Working to make enough money just to go out drinking.
And...

You know, I could go on but why? Anyone who knows of my time at Cosmo's knows how evil Food Service can make a person. All in all, if you ever wondered what it might be like to spend a night in Las Vegas with Jeb and Edwards - this movie is a hilariously accurate peak into a very disturbing world.

BAM!

The Best Thing That Ever Happened To Me...

If you told me, one year ago, that I would be where I am now - I would have laughed myself silly, then kicked you in the nuts for messing with me.

None the less, one year ago today I met Kerrie for the first time. It was a cool October evening and we met at Cohen & Cooke for wine, a cheese plate and to see Billy and Russel Martin play an acoustic set. Kristy and Tom came out, Billy and Russel did that awful "Edmund Fitzgerald" cover we all hate, and I was told "...It takes a special guy to rock the tie!"

One thing leads to another, and one year later Kerrie and I are in Cinci together starting new and better lives together...

So to celebrate the first year, this weekend has been a food baddie spectacular. To start, we had a quiet 4-course dinner at home Friday night. I started with a beautiful Butternut Squash & Ginger Soup followed by a fairly classic Caesar Salad, then the entree plate of Beef Filets with Rosemary Demi Glace and Garlic Smashed Potatoes. The fourth plate, dessert, was an enticing and decadent Chocolate Molten Cake with Raspberry Coulis and Chocolate Sauce. We had a very nice 2002 Claret to go with the meal and it was amazing.

For dinner last night, Kerrie and I went to a nice French Bistro in Glendale called The Grand Finale. The food was exceptional! We each had strip steaks with Caesar Salads, mine done Au Poiver. Before we left, we were given complimentary Apple Cinnamon Cheesecake. Life, as they say, is good...

And Today is the day. It's funny how time slips away so quickly, but at least in this case I've enjoyed every second of it. One year -and a few hundred wonderful meals- later life is making sense to me. God, it feels good.

Love ya Kerrie. Love ya bunches...

OneYearGroove:
Dean Martin - The Best Thing That Ever Happened To Me
Bobby Darin - More
Daft Punk - Something About Us
Zimpala - New Home

The Grand Finale