On the surface this would seem to be a good idea, and I’m for anything that supports family farms. But, does this leave the farmer to beholden to food producers? I really don’t know. But I do know this, you didn’t come here for answers to life’s big questions.
Last night The Principessa made a fabulous Butternut Squash – Bacon risotto using our own bacon and our own squash. We licked the plates clean.
No, not to get home from the shore. Bacon is underway on the BGE before 9 AM! Black pepper, coriander, bay leaf cure. My clothes already reek of applewood smoke.
This year we welcomed a new member to the Jerzeetomato family of grills. This sweet satay grill that The Principessa gave me last Christmas. It’s what Thai street vendors use for those skewers of bliss. Hats off to the good folks import food.com for importing this.
Filed under: Camping, Food, Kitchen | Tags: Bluegrass, Camping, Delfest, Food, music, Vietnamese Food
Seriously. Well, for this family at any rate.
For the last few years we’ve been going to a music festival in western Maryland called Delfest every Memorial Day weekend. Camping out at a county fairground and soaking up the music for four fun filled days. Last year we started what we hope will be a tradition. Vietnamese food night at Delfest!
Clay Pot Pork had made it into the heavy rotation for dinner at home and one night shortly before last year’s Delfest we figured out it could be made pretty easily on a camp stove, particularly if all the prep work was done at home before driving down.
Once the Principessa started cooking, we had a constant stream of people stopping by our campsite, angling for taste. Hell, next year we could probably vend the stuff!
When I moved to Atlanta in 1987, I lived a stone’s throw from the Pachinko House named in the lead to the NYT’s article on the BGE. I never ventured into the store in the eight years I lived there, although I was intrigued. It must have been the heat. But a couple of years later some friends in DC started raving about the Egg. Particularly after one gave the other a BGE as a wedding present. And then one of those friends, my BFF, GAVE me an egg for my 45th birthday. (I don’t know, he doesn’t have kids, I’ll never be able to reciprocate). The rest as they say is history. As anyone who has tasted my version of Zack Palaccio’s Fatty ‘Cue Ribs can attest.
You really can cook just about anything in the BGE. The Principessa’s Pizza is legendary around these parts. As is the fire roasted tomato sauce.
Growing up, Saturday nights in the summer meant one thing: Dad searing a chuck steak on the grill. And not just any marinade would do. It had to be the one below. The smell of this marinade causes serious olfactory deja-vu for me. And the best part is, if you reheat the marinade it makes a great steak sauce.
The cut of steak is also important for my deja-vu’ing. It must be what is known as a “7 bone steak” to trigger the memories. Mom bought it back then because it was cheap. We buy it now because we like it. The 7 bone steak is not named this because it has 7 bones but, because one of the bones in it resmbles a “7”. Mmm-kay. If you say so. But the great thing about this steak is that it gives you a bit of many different cuts and great flavor to boot. It may be a bit chewier than other cuts but the flavor is worth it.
The marinade/sauce will work on other cuts of steak. If you must.
Saturday Night Chuck Steak Marinade
2/3 cup catsup
½ cup water
1/3 cup lemon juice
1 tsp. celery seed
1 TBS. Worcestershire sauce
1 bay leaf
½ tsp. black pepper
½ tsp. Tabasco sauce
1 tsp. kosher salt
1 tsp. onion powder
Combine all ingredients in a small sauce pan bring to a boil, lower heat and simmer for 5 minutes. Allow to cool. Marinate a bone-in center cut chuck steak for at least 2 and up to 8 hours. Remove steak and reserve marinade. Grill!
Simmer reserved sauce for 5 minutes and either serve warm with steak or allow to cool.
Filed under: Food
Not sure why it had to be done but it has. The NYT has combined all their Dining and Drinking blogs into one blog. I only really read Bitten but now I will have to sift through the others to get to him. I suppose I will check out the other posts but enjoyed the unfiltered variety of blog.
Our current favorite band excels at face-melting bluegrass music. But it turns out mandolin player Jeff Austin is also quite accomplished in the kitchen. We should have known when we saw them last summer they talked about the great restaurant down the street from the venue. A restaurant a friend had recomended to me and we passed up. Just think! We could have dined with the band!
Great interview on Epicurean Musician.
JerzeeTomato 