Bakin-n-Bacon

A Tonic for Any Weather

The weather here in Minnesota is nothing if not exasperating.Today there was a tornado close to our friends' house (luckily they are okay, but at least 1 person died). This disturbing, violent spring weather comes on the heels of a long, snowy, cold, snowy winter (did I mention snowy?).

But even though the days may be stormy, there is always an oasis waiting in the liquor cabinet. Recently I tried something new--Applejack. I still don't know what it is, really, but that didn't stop me from mixing it with orange juice, lime juice, and Grand Marnier for a tasty drink. A couple of these and the edge is gone; I can sit on the front porch and laugh at the rain. (And curse the weeds in my yard. Why can't my tomatoes grow that fast?) 

Coffee Scarves

I chance encounter on an elevator led me to dig out the old crochet needle and yarn and go to town on items destined to be stocking stuffers this Christmas.

No, this chance encounter wasn't a scene from a romantic comedy, but rather, wthile waiting for an elevator noticing that someone had placed a coffee sleeve on the ledge right outside the elevator door. It was a crocheted coffee sleeve, and I had one of those "I could totally do that" moments. Unlike most of those moments I followed through and even took it one step further a. I made the sleeve long enough for the ends to cross over like a scarf, hence Coffee Scarves (trademark pending...).

I have to admit I was so rusty with the crochet needle that I had to refer back to my instruction book because I kept screwing up. Luckily a quick reference got me back in the groove and I'm making these to give to several of my latte-swilling coworkers and friends. I'm keeping a couple for myself, of course - probably the prototype above.

For those who know how to crochet, it's dead easy - three rows of double crochet and one row of single crochet at the top. Sew on a button or other bling, and tie the scarf together in a few places with bits of the yarn.  

Wonderful Elixir

In this last year or so I've taken an interest in vintage cocktails. Although I have tried several, this is the one I keep returning to. It's called a Corpse Reviver #2, and it indeed revives the corpse I turn into some days after work.

This cocktail is one where the whole is truly more than the sum of its parts. It's got a great balance fo sweet and tangy with a good alcohol kick without being boozy.

The only bad thing about it is that I usually want more than one, and if I have more than two I risk returning to the "corpse" state again.

Most folks probably don't have all the ingredients for this one on hand, but I'll give you the recipe anyway.

Corpse Reviver #2

3/4 oz. gin (I prefer Plymouth but if you can't find it any top shelf gin will do)
3/4 oz. Cointreau (or Grand Marnier)
3/4 oz. fresh lemon juice
3/4 oz. Lillet Blanc (a French aperitif - medium to high end liquor stores will carry this)
Dash Pernod or Absinthe (just a couple of drops - this adds a whisper of anise/licorice)

Combine the first four ingredients in a cocktail shaker with ice. Shake until well chilled. Strain into a glass and stir in a couple drops of Pernod or Absinthe. I suppose you could put the Pernod in with the other ingredients but I like to do it at the end so I can taste as I add to get just the right amount. Garnish with whole star anise.

Spring Salad

Spring has finally sprung here in the upper Midwest and I've been out enjoying the weather; hence the lack of posts.

The past several days have led to a profusion of violets; I've been doing my best to eat as many as I can. I have a few in the fridge waiting to be candied, and I've been tossing them on salads every chance I get. Our yard has hundreds, if not thousands (oh, and dandelion greens have made an appearance on the table too.)

In some ways I'd like to have a lush lawn free of unsightly weeds. On the other hand, I eschew the use of most herbicides and pesticides, other than organic corn gluten meal, which I didn't apply this year due to financial constraints. So my yard is weedy. As I say, if you can't beat 'em, eat 'em!

I guess kiwi fruit and mandarin oranges aren't exactly spring fruits, but they certainly contribute the right colors for this salad. It is (almost) too pretty to eat.

More posts to come soon. Upcoming: goat cheese cheesecake, the perils of not planning ahead when baking, a new twist on the kitchen remodel, and more newspaper articles that trickle down to the blog.

Food for Thought - Is Eating Out Green?

I've been eating out a lot recently due to my commute and other factors, and it occurred to me one evening that in some ways, eating out can be more green than cooking at home. Now, I'm not talking about going to McDonald's and getting something highly packaged and of dubious taste and nutritional value. I'm talking about eating at a neighborhood restaurant, where you aren't driving much, if at all, to get to it, and where you are served on china, not in a styrofoam box.

The logic behind my thinking is this: the restaurants are buying foodstuffs with much less packaging than in the grocery stores, their equipment is being to feed many, many people, increasing the efficiency of the fossil fuels used to cook it (I am assuming, although I could be wrong, that the cost/use per meal of gas/electric in a restaurant is lower than in a home kitchen). Mostly I am thinking in terms of packaging and distribution - instead of everyone driving to the store to buy food in little packages (many of which are not easily recyclable), then driving home, instead people walking to the corner pub and eating a sandwich (accompanied by a pint, of course!), may be more ecologically sound. Or maybe I had one too many Grey Goose sours when I thought of this. Am I just trying to justify my growing habit of joining my DH's co-workers for a drink and dinner at the local bar & grill?  I'm sure I'm forgetting something - what are your thoughts on this subject? 

Diners & Dives, but NO Guy Fieri

I've been eating out a LOT recently, since I have been away from home more than I've been home the past two weeks. First I was in Washington, DC, and ate mostly crappy hotel food for three days. Then I went to Vintage Motorcycle Days at Mid_Ohio Sports Car Course in Lexington, Ohio, and ate mostly crappy chain food. Now I'm in Sunny Philadelphia, and I'll be darned if I eat any more crappy hotel food.

Instead of staying at the conference hotel, I am staying at the Thomas Bond House Bed & Breakfast (the hotel ran out of rooms for our conference, a situation I did not lament greatly). My flight arrived early in the morning, and the conference doesn't start until about 4:00 p.m., so I had time to do a little sightseeing. But first I needed to eat breakfast since I got up at dark o'clock. I asked the B&B proprieter if there were any good lunch/brunch places. He recommended a local diner, the Snow White Restaurant. It is a typical old school diner, and such a refreshing change from hotel "eggs" and "coffee."

I ordered pancakes and bacon, and I wasn't disappointed. No matter how hard I try, I can't replicate diner pancakes at home. I think I need a griddle with years' worth of greasy buildup in order to do it. The coffee was good, too, and the waitress tired and surly, just what one would expect. I almost expected Flo to come over and tell me to "kiss my grits."

Now in an email I've been informed that I'm supposed to eat at the conference hotel anyway, to the tune of $114.00 over three days. You bet your hiney I'll be fighting that charge. I didn't bring any checks - think they'll buy that excuse? I hope so.

We had planned to find a microbrewery tonight for dinner, but I might be dining at the Hyatt instead. Keep your fingers crossed that I can get out of it! If I have to pay the money, I will eat at the hotel since I'm certainly not going to pay without receiving SOMETHING. I might tell them I'm a vegan with gluten intolerance and make them suffer for it if I can't get out of the deal. Plus I'll take pictures and have a post for the Gallery of Regrettable Foods.

I just LOVE conferences, don't you??

Parting shot of the inside of the Snow White:

Cleveland - Foodie Destination?

Early this month, I met up with a group of friends in Cleveland for a foodie weekend getaway. (Note: I don't like the term "foodie" but words like gourmand sound so pretentious.) Why Cleveland? Frankly, until recently I viewed Cleveland as "The Mistake by the Lake." Watching Anthony Bourdain's No Reservations episode on Cleveland changed my mind, as did the Food Network's Next Iron Chef where Cleveland Chef Michael Symon beat out all other contestants for the honor. I started reading about great restaurants in the Cleveland area (Chef Symon's Lola and Lolita, The Flying Fig, Fire, Carrie Cerino's), a good brewery (Great Lakes Brewing Co.), and my attitude about the city began to change.

My husband imports motorcycles and the port of entry is Cleveland so he travels there frequently. Before, I never wanted to accompany him on his business trips but now I had a reason. In addition to the restaurants and the Westside Market, there are two Trader Joe's, a new Penzey's, Whole Foods and Sur la Table (none of which we have here). So I've been going with my husband, leaving him to deal with the customs officials and brokers, and going off shopping. I hadn't eaten at any of the above-named restaurants, though, until a group of people on the Cook's Illustrated Bulletin Board decided Cleveland would be the next destination to "meet and eat."

We certainly did eat. Everyone brought goodies for an initial reception (I swear I could live on Marilyn's toffee), and there was a plethora of spreads, dips, charcuterie and pickles. Desserts were not overlooked by this crowd - the swoon-inducing toffee and a variety of cookies were offered (including one of my favorites, speculaas). Yum. It's nice to be able to talk fervently about food with people nearly nonstop and not have them try to commit you to a nice, quiet hospital.

We ate dinners at Lola and The Flying Fig. The picture at the top is of the Tempura Green Beans appetizer at The Flying Fig, which Michael Ruhlman recommended when he spoke to our group. Yep, Mr. Charcuterie himself spoke to our small group after we had been cooking together all morning at The Viking Store in Cleveland's swanky Legacy Village shopping center. If I had a kitchen like the one at the Viking store I might finally have enough room. It is bigger than the apartment I used to live in! I have included a few photos below of our group cooking together.

Most of the other food photos I took didn't turn out very well. (I even forgot my camera for the Lola dinner. Doh!) I tried sweetbreads for the first time and thought they were pretty good, but I probably won't try to make them myself. I also had duck at Lola (excellent), but I must say I was a tad disappointed with dessert. I had the 6 a.m. special, which was French toast and maple-bacon ice cream. The ice cream was okay but not outstanding, and the rest of the dish was not memorable at all. Perhaps my expectations were too high because I make a lot of desserts myself, but I just wasn't impressed.

The Flying Fig dessert was better (fig and thyme crisp with lemon ice cream that was excellent), but the rest of the meal, while very good, wasn't quite up to the meal at Lola. I had a small plate sampler with Ohio lamb meatballs (fair), a local goat cheese served with candied pecans, toast slices and a strawberry preserve (excellent), and a scallop stuffed with short ribs (very good). The tempura green beans were tasty, although the dipping sauces were a bit strange. One was a sweet maple sauce and the other a mustard. I might try to make the beans at home sometime - everything is better deep fried!

 

 

 

Proselytizing at the Grocery Store (A Compulsion)

How many times have you overhead a conversation at the grocery store debating the merits of certain products, and you wanted to scream out "NO, NO you idiot! That totally sucks rocks!" Well, you probably have a much better vocabulary than I do, and don't think of the phrase "totally sucks rocks." But at any rate, do you try to enlighten the proletariat?

Or, when you see someone reaching for the most processed, least food-like boxed dinner (like Hamburger Helper), do you feel like slapping and shaking them?

I might need anger management therapy.

No, I don't actually DO any of that, but I sure think about it. Sometimes I will even offer my opinion if someone looks hesitant, confused, or if she pauses just a little too long.

Once an elderly lady was peering intently at packages of frozen chicken breast. She seemed to be reading the labels, so I commented to her that it was a shame that we had to pay for water and chemicals since all the chicken was "enhanced." The woman looked at me blankly, so I pointed to the small print that said "may contain up to a 15% solution." The blank stare didn't change, so I tried one more time to explain how the enhanced chicken wasn't less expensive than unadulterated chicken if you factored in the amount of water you were buying - plus it was chock full o' chemicals. The woman nodded quickly and scurried away, presumably to escape the freaky chicken evangelist. (She kept the chicken.)

Sometimes people seem grateful for the insight I provide (especially guys - although sometimes I think they are just trying to strike up a conversation). A few people have thanked me profusely for explaining something or teaching them something new. But more often than not, if I offer an unsolicited opinion, I get a weak smile and the person slinks away. Recently I've been keeping my big trap shut, even when it pains me to do so. For instance, this week while passing through the "international" aisle, a man and what I assumed to be his daughter (please let that have been his daughter) were looking at pasta. They picked up a bag of Delallo, which I consider to be a  mediocre pasta, and the man said, "well it's from Italy." So are Fiats, but they aren't very good! (Actually I owned a Fiat and loved it dearly, but then again I have a live-in mechanic. Anyway, you get the point.) The sad thing was, the Barilla was right behind them, is a superior product, and it was even on sale. They paid twice as much for half the product. But I just walked on, because I know that evangelism isn't appreciated, no matter how knowledgeable the provider.

Charcoal - DIY

After my husband discovered that regular charcoal in fact does contain coal, in addition to other nasty byproducts, he switched exclusively to lump hardwood char. That can be difficult to find around here, and is more expensive than regular charcoal. So he decided to learn how to make his own char from wood trimmings we had after we cut down a large tree in the backyard. He has discovered that the flavor of REAL hardwood char is superior even to manufactured lump hardwood (which is mostly wood floor and pallet trimmings).

The most important thing to remember when making your own char is to be certain that the outside of the wood is completely charred, as in total carbon black, otherwise you are cooking with soot or creosote. My husband usually starts with with oak or maple branches with a wrist-sized diameter and cut to fit the length of the firebox. (I have seen some websites that recommend chunks no larger than 5-6 inches, but we have a pretty big firebox). To make your own, find some wood, cut it into the biggest chunks that will easily fit in your smoker or grill, and fill your firebox pretty full. You want to layer the wood criss-cross style for maximum exposure to flame and air during the beginning phase to be sure that it all chars evenly. This means you will be able to see light through to the bottom of the stack.

My husband prefers to ignite the wood with a MAPP gas or propane torch rather than soaking it in lighter fluid so it doesn't have any off-odors or noxious gases. You could also do it kind of like a chimney, by placing wadded paper underneath and lighting the paper until the wood catches. It takes a lot longer to do that, though. Once it's lit, leave the fire uncovered and burning vigorously until all the wood is completely charred on the outside. Now comes the critical step. Close the lid, close the dampers, close any vents. This allows the wood to burn with no oxygen. This consumes the wood and leaves the char. In the beginning of the process, a lot of smoke will be produced, which is actually the water being steamed out of the wood. It's our way of sending smoke signals to the neighbors so they know we'll be having some tasty pork and/or beef later in the day.

When it looks like glowing orange coals, rather similar to regular charcoal, it's ready to be used for cooking. This usually takes about an hour to an hour and a half in our firebox. If the chunks of wood are big enough, you can keep a medium-sized smoker can at 400 degrees for several hours just by regulating the vents/damper. When you are ready to smoke or grill, open up the damper and chimney vent to allow air to flow, thereby increasing the temperature of the grill. If you are grilling you can grill directly over the coals, or you can smoke with an offset or vertical smoker box.

You don't want to add fresh wood to this fire (to avoid soot), so if you have to add fuel to keep the heat up, it's best to add manufactured lump hardwood char. You can add small pieces of raw wood for flavoring, but don't add large chunks for fuel/heat. Just as with charcoal, this will burn until nothing is left but ash. We use the ash in the cracks of our driveway to keep weeds from growing. It's quite alkaline, and most plants will not tolerate a highly alkaline soil. It's better for the environment than weed killer and just as effective.

Food Processor Death Match: Round 2

The second, and deciding, round of the food processor battle is over. I'll announce my winner at the end, but first let's review how each competitor fared. The task I tackled next was making a puree. I chose hummus bi tahini, because the texture change is substantial moving from nearly crunchy chickpeas to an almost smooth puree. I like to leave my hummus a bit coarse so it doesn't lay like a paste on the tongue.

The KitchenAid took less time to achieve the consistency I was after. After the same amount of processing time, you can see the difference:
The KitchenAid is on the left and the Cuisinart on the right. You'll notice that the KA puree is finer, although it left a little oil unincorporated. The Cuisinart still has larger chunks of chickpeas, but all of the ingredients are evenly distributed. These photos are after 20 seconds of processing. It took another 10 seconds in the Cuisinart for it to achieve the same texture as the KA, but it eventually got the same results. The KA wins the puree contest.

Next I moved on to more vegetable preparation and grated cabbage and carrots for slaw. I had to cut the cabbage wedge down more to fit in the KA's narrow feed tube, and that may have been the cause of the noticeable difference in texture between the two units. But, it may have been the distribution of the grating holes - the KA has holes that are more evenly distributed, while the Cuisinart has a cluster of holes near the center and then fewer at the edges. Below, on the left, is the KA cabbage. It almost looks chopped rather than grated or shredded. I preferred the texture achieved by the Cuisinart - that's what I think shredded cabbage should look like.

The knife shown in the photo on the right was to chop up the "angel's share" of cabbage each processor left whirling helplessly around the top of the blade:

What's interesting, although I didn't take a picture of it, is that for the carrot, the KA left a perfect little carrot disc, and the Cuisinart left a piece from the side of the carrot.

One thing that confused me when I was setting up the processors to do the grating and slicing is that the KA blade is upside down compared to the Cuisinart. The lip is on the top side instead of the bottom. I thought it might cause more problems with food catching and such but it doesn't seem to make any difference.

The carrot test was not as conclusive. They both grated them well, although the Cuisinart's may have been a hair thinner. The KA shreds seemed more three-dimensional, but the difference was very slight. I don't know that one was better than the other but they were slightly different. Both were acceptable to me.

For what proved to be the final task I was willing to do, I did a liquid leaking test. I made a large batch of marinara, which called for 56 ounces of whole tomatoes that needed to be pureed. It was first cooked down, so it probably was only about 40 ounces by the time I put it in the processors. I put it in the Cuisinart first and spun it for two pulses. The amount of liquid went over the recommended liquid line, so I was expecting the worst. However, it didn't seem to leak. There was a little liquid on the stem of the processor, but no drips or puddles under the bowl. I transferred the contents to the KA, where the liquid just reached the liquid limit line. Two pulses later, and I had slight leakage. Again, the KA is the photo on the left:
While the KA supposedly has a higher liquid capacity if you go by the line indicated on the bowl, in reality the capacities are very close to the same in both models. It still beats my 7-cup, though, which leaked with a single 28-ounce can of tomatoes in it!

 

I hate to harp on a subject, but I have to go back to the sturdiness factor again. Looking at the blades of both units, it appears that the Cuisinart is again the winner. Cuisinart uses rivets more than KitchenAid, and where KA does use rivets they appear to be smaller. Again, there is no way of knowing for sure without doing destructive testing, but if I had to guess, I'd say the Cuisinart blades will hold up better.

I decided not to make a dough with the machines because I don't use a food processor for dough. But repeated tests have shown that the Cuisinart is a bit better for making dough, but that the KA will perform more than adequately in this task.

A couple of points I didn't mention before and I will wrap up this comparison. The Cuisinart motor is quieter than the KitchenAid; however, the bowl of the KA is thicker and therefore masks some of the noise from ingredients hitting the sides of the bowl, so neither one is a clear winner in this area. It's tough to make a silent food processor that actually works. But neither of these is jarring in its noise level.

Both have motors that are close to one another in stated wattage. I don't know how much difference 20 more watts will make when you are already at 700 watts. That is nearly 3/4 horsepower! Of course, the actual performance will depend on the current reaching the outlet. Although the electric company may claim otherwise, your household current probably varies between 90 and 130 volts throughout the day. The condition of the wiring in your house affects the outlet voltage as well. Our usually runs between 110 and 118. So we aren't getting quite the performance out of the motors that we could - the rating is for 120 volts. But both these puppies are pretty stout

I had some trouble getting the bowl off the KitchenAid. The indents on the base are longer than on the Cuisinart so you have to turn the bowl just right to lift it off. I'm sure I'd get better at it with practice but it annoyed the shit out of me during the testing. Also, I much prefer the paddle controls of the Cuisinart, because the buttons on the KA are fairly small and I always had to look down to make sure I was pressing the right one. So I am going to rate the Cuisinart higher on ease of use with a caveat that I previously owned a Cuisinart so my comfort level is greater with that brand.

In the end, both of these machines are great food processors, and are superior to the Black & Decker/Oster/Hamilton Beach models. You really can't go wrong with either of them, so base your choice on how well each one performs in the tasks you will be doing in your food processor.

Here's a summary of the results:

Looks: in the eye of the beholder
Size of unit: Cuisinart (it fits under my cabinets)
Dry ingredient capacity: Cuisinart
Liquid ingredient capacity: Tie
Smooth puree: KitchenAid
Grating: Cuisinart
Slicing: KitchenAid (two slicing blades)
Accessories: KitchenAid (extra slicing blade; mini bowl/blade)
Sturdiness (perceived): Cuisinart
Noise: Tie (I don't have a decibel meter to measure precisely)
Ease of use: Cuisinart (caveat - I was a previous Cuisinart user)

Neither of these units clearly outshone the other, so I can't say one is a much better product. It depends on the criteria that are important to you. If you want an all around machine and don't care if it fits under your cabinets, I'd choose the KitchenAid because it has more accessories and, if you like black, it's cheaper. If capacity and sturdiness are what you're after, choose the Cuisinart. I am keeping the Cuisinart, based on the following criteria:

1. The dry capacity is larger - it will handle a double batch of cookie dough (you could say 'it had me at double dough' - groan)
2. It appears to be more sturdily constructed
3. It fits under my cabinets - if I have to put it in a cabinet, I'll never use it
4. My comfort level is greater due to my previous Cuisinart ownership

Even though I had to spend an extra $70, I'm happy with my Cuisinart. I'm looking forward to many years of processing bliss.