| Spotlight shines on Starlight | | Posted Friday, January 05, 2007 1:15:19 PM by Blog57 Team | | From a man who claims to have "done it all from fine dining to grits and groceries," Florala resident John Strickland has found his niche in barbeque.As owner of the Starlight Grill, Strickland and his Texas-style barbeque have received acclaim that has landed them in the pages of "Greatest BBQ Restaurants in the South." The book, published by Sawgrass Books, is expected to be available this spring.Strickland said when a gentleman came in and expressed an interest in his ribs, he took it with a grain of salt. "I've always got people promising the moon and stars, so I just figured he was one more," Strickland said, when in fact the gentleman, Hamlin Edicott, turned out to be the owner of the publishing company. "I didn't know him from Adam, but he told methose ribs were the best he'd ever eaten, that they were fork tender.... | |
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| | | Viva la diferencia | | Posted Tuesday, November 14, 2006 3:27:30 AM by Blog57 Team | | In the regions of Spain, you know where you are by the food you eat. In Australia, you can have it all, writes Matt Preston. FOR 24 years Urbano Gutierrez has given many Victorians their first taste of Spain from the kitchens of the Robbie Burns Hotel in Collingwood. Ask him about Spanish food and he fires off a staccato list of regional features: "In the past it wasn't easy to move produce across the country, hence regions developed specialties. The north has beef, the west and north-west is pork (including the legendary pata negra pig which makes the best jamon). The centre has more lamb and pork. And Valencia claims paella but everyone has similar rice dishes." There is also a lot of one-pot stewing going on, he says. These braises differ from region to region depending on the ingredients available locally and may even be served in parts with the meat followed by the broth.... | |
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| | | Roasting brings out the best in root vegetables | | Posted Saturday, November 11, 2006 3:32:39 PM by Blog57 Team | | Roasted vegetables have been all the rage for a while, and for good reason. Roasted Brussels sprouts and roasted cauliflower conjure up images of caramelized edges and creamy interiors, whereas boiled Brussels sprouts and steamed cauliflower too often make you think overcooked and soggy. Roasting vegetables does take longer than steaming or boiling, but it is a cooking method with a lot more give. If you steam broccoli for too long, it falls apart, gets mushy and takes on bitterness. The longer you roast broccoli, on the other hand, the crisper and crunchier and more golden it gets. Preheat the oven That's why I often roast vegetables on busy nights. As soon as I think about dinner, I preheat the oven, then get the vegetables in there. They may take 20 to 30 minutes to roast, but that gives me time to prepare the rest of the meal without having to think about them.... | |
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| | | 12% of Americans Don't Know Alaska is a State - Alaskan Brewing ... | | Posted Saturday, November 11, 2006 1:47:19 PM by Blog57 Team | | At Alaskan Brewing Co., we're a little worried. We're afraid that people might mistakenly label us an import beer. Apparently, 12 percent of Americans don't know that Alaska is a state, according to a recent survey conducted by Alaska Gov. Frank Murkowski's Office. It's true that there are no roads to Juneau, where Alaskan Brewing Co. is located. That means that most of our ingredients come up by barge and we send our beer to the Lower 48 by barge, too. But that doesn't mean we live in another nation. According to the survey, 60 percent of Americans believe that half or more of Alaska is covered by glaciers, ice and snow most of the year. We admit that the water we use to make our beer comes from the Juneau Icefield, which covers more than 1,500 square miles. However, only about 5 percent of the state is actually covered in glaciers, ice and snow year-round.... | |
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| | | Las Brisas | | Posted Wednesday, November 08, 2006 11:17:01 PM by Blog57 Team | | It must have been a couple years ago when I happened to wander into Las Brisas on Milpas Street. It was the former home of Hibachi, an Asian restaurant that served a mix of Korean hotpots, sushi, and grilled Japanese fare. So though I was bummed that I wouldn't be ordering Korean anytime soon (where can we find Korean food in town now? anyone?), I was happily surprised to find the quaintest, more colorful Mexican restaurant in town. I shared my newfound information with friends, one of whom — we'll call him Dave the Jeweler — made Las Brisas a nearly daily spot. The servers got to know him, he brought in friends from near and far, and they even started to give Dave deals due to his reliable visits. The most intriguing and unique allure for us, other than the brightly decorated chairs, steady service, and somewhat hidden atmosphere, was the lobster, which could be prepared in one of a dozen ways, all for around $20.... | |
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| | | October 30, 2006 | | Posted Monday, November 06, 2006 7:28:07 PM by Blog57 Team | | During the next 8 weeks of Cook's Exchange, I'm going to share my Top 10 favorite no-fail recipes that have pleased our family during the past several years. Many of these recipes have appeared in the Daily Press; some have come from friends, relatives and favorite cookbooks. If you have a favorite we've excluded, our would like to share one of your own, please share it here! Week One: Top 10 Appetizers 1. Morgan's “Chicken in the Chips" Dip 2 cups diced cooked chicken 1 cup cream of chicken soup 1/2 cup sour cream 1/4 cup Tapatio sauce 2 cups grated Monterey Jack cheese 2 cups Fritos corn chips 1 large bag Fritos scoops chips Combine cooked chicken, soup, sour cream and Tapatio. Mix well. Spoon half of mixture into lightly greased quart casserole dish.... | |
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| | | THE BOOKSHELF: Cookbooks offer tough directions | | Posted Thursday, November 02, 2006 3:00:34 AM by Blog57 Team | | Washington chefs Fabio Trabocchi and Michel Richard know how to create modern dishes that please the palate and flatter the plate. In their two new cookbooks, they successfully collaborated with author Peter Kaminsky to translate their love of food into collections of recipes that have very different missions. Yet with an exception or two in almost every chapter, Richard's "Happy in the Kitchen" and Trabocchi's "Cucina of Le Marche" pose challenges to home cooks in terms of time or skills or key ingredients or equipment, and sometimes all of those combined. Will readers remain undaunted by the early mentions of the egg topper and meat slicer employed in Richard's kitchen? Will they take extra steps to find leg of wild boar, almond flour or manteca, the soft lard used to prepare some of Trabocchi's dishes? Both chefs bet that we're willing to commit.... | |
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| | | An exotic taste from down home | | Posted Monday, October 30, 2006 7:24:08 AM by Blog57 Team | | One of the most popular crabmeat recipes in the Gulf Coast region is West Indies Salad. West Indies Salad, a cold hors d'oeuvre usually spooned onto crackers, is a simple combination of lump crabmeat, onion, vinegar, oil, salt and pepper. The dish was invented by the late restaurateur Bill Bayley of Mobile, who also has been credited with the invention of fried crab claws. Bayley owned and operated Bayley's Restaurant in Mobile, which opened in the late 1940s. Bayley, a former merchant marine, was a figure straight out of central casting if Hollywood was looking for a stereotypical Southern café owner of that era. Short, rotund and never without a cigar, he invented the dish while serving as a ship steward. As the legend goes, while Bayley's ship was docked in a faraway port he purchased a sack of lobsters and returned to the ship, where he boiled them and added ingredients that were available: oil, vinegar, salt and pepper.... | |
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| | | Mama Kwans to Kick off 2006 Seafood Series | | Posted Saturday, October 28, 2006 3:29:44 PM by Blog57 Team | | The North Carolina Aquarium on Roanoke Island will kick off its 2006 Seafood Series with an Outer Banks favorite, Mama Kwans Tiki Bar & Grill.Chef Todd Riddick and Assistant Chef Jon Pettitt will bring their delicious seafood recipes and talents to the Aquarium on Nov. 2, at 6 p.m."I want to give back to the community through my skills as a chef and share my recipes with folks that enjoy new and delicious seafood dishes," said Riddick.Riddick and Pettitt will prepare an orange teriyaki-glazed chicken stir fry and their tequila-lime lobster chowder, which will be entered in the chowder cook-off the following weekend. Participants will not only get to take home recipes for these two dishes, they also will be able to taste yummy samples during class.Beth Wilcox, Special Activities Coordinator said, "We are lining up talented chefs of the Outer Banks and are looking for both individuals and groups that would like to participate in this year's presentations at the NC Aquarium on Roanoke Island, said Beth Wilcox, Aquarium special activities coordinator.... | |
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| | | Table Talk | Surf and turf: Two upscale chains opening local sites | | Posted Friday, October 27, 2006 11:15:08 AM by Blog57 Team | | The region should see two major, high-end chain openings in the next two days: Fleming's Prime Steakhouse & Wine Bar comes online tomorrow at the Radnor Financial Center, and Oceanaire Seafood Room, a swellegant seafooder, turns on the lights Saturday at 700 Walnut St., on the western edge of Washington Square. Both restaurants say their typical check is $55 a person, but it's easy to see how alcohol can inflate the bill. Fleming's (555 E. Lancaster Ave., Radnor, 610-688-9463) surely is the fanciest steak house in this part of the Main Line, and its location two-tenths of a mile off the Blue Route will make it a destination. Fleming's main selling point, besides steaks, is the selection of 100 wines by the glass, including 2-ounce tasters. (I don't know if this was deliberate, but Fleming's phone number translates to 610-NUT-WINE.) Operating partner is Patrick English, who formerly oversaw Smith & Wollensky on Rittenhouse Square, and partner-chef is Davis Langhorne, a Virginia native, Culinary Institute of America grad, and three-year Fleming's vet who previously worked for the Brennan family in New Orleans.... | |
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