cooksome

shin chon garden in ellicott city

another sunday, another outing with friend tami.  on this particular sunday a few weeks back, we ventured away from baltimore out to ellicott city  to enjoy some korean bbq.  recommended by sun kim, the proprietor of pine orchard liquors on rte 40 as the best korean food around.  it did not disappoint. i ordered bi bim bop the classic korean rice with vegetable dish.  tami was a korean food virgin.  not that i'm an expert for sure but i  have had the advantage of a korean friend to guide me through the beginners maze.  bul go gi, japchae, assorted kimchis and panchan  i love this stuff.  tami had bul go gi and cee ordered  pork belly cooked on the grill.  we also received  about 15 (no kidding) panchan.  there was a miso soup for me and another soup that was a wonderful sour and savory broth with a potato and tofu.  i could have bathed in it it was so good.  probably best not to let your mind go there.  what else?  cabbage kimchi, soft tofu, korean potato salad, cucumber kimchi, thick strands of daikon in sauce, a sea weed deal, and steamed eggs,  the flavors of korean food are unlike anything else. having grown up in a pennsylvania dutch -german household  (7 sweets and 7 sours) i crave a diversity of flavors in my meals.  which is to say, i'm not a one dish dinner kind of gal. the koreans obviously have the same philosiphy.

we were by the way, the only round eyes in the place, something that made me very happy.  if your going for it, go all the way

tami being quite the party girl was ready to try some strange korean booze so we asked about the soju. the waitress, who's english was limited, brought us this little bottle with pictures of girls talking on cell phones.  i am still not sure about the packaging because it's a lot like vodka.  as it turns out there is a whole etiquette when drinking soju.  suffice it to say we blew that.

for the uninitiated what follows is the soju etiquette  taken from a site called drinkfocus.com

Soju Etiquette
As with other Asian liquors, drinking soju follows a distinct etiquette. It
is normally served in a shot glass. If you are in the company of people who
follow this tradition, keep these rules in mind:
Drink soju by sipping it or taking it as a shot; both forms are appropriate
according to soju etiquette.

Hold your glass with both hands if a respected person is pouring the liquor.

Never pour your own glass of soju.

Refill a glass with soju only when it is empty.

Soju is consumed in group gatherings.

When pouring soju for others, hold the soju bottle with the right hand. Keep
your left hand touching your elbow or forearm.

When receiving soju from others, place the shot glass in your left palm,
hold it with your right hand and slightly bow your head.

Younger adults at the table turn away and sip their soju if elders are
present.

Jacks Bistro

jack's bistro

This funky little place seats about 35 to 40  max.  The service  was friendly and very knowledgeable with out a snippet of  pretentiousness.  There were four of us dining together on a Sunday night.  One would have no idea of the current economic woes from the packed house at Jacks. 

For an appetizer we shared garlic shrimp.  very tasty, perfectly cooked shrimp, nice soft pita bread and loads of garlic sauce to drive a way the vampires.  I don't know if it always comes with 8 shrimp (perfectly divided by 4) or if that was an accommodation for our table.  I thought the check said 9.25 but the menu says $12.00.  So much for my memory. The wait staff person recommended it for 4 people to share and it was perfect.

For entrees we tried

steak frites

sous vide filet mignon over arugula with blue cheese sauce

sous vide scallops with thai peanut sauce, basmati rice and vegetables

pork belly jambalaya

The pork belly was amazing.  crispy juicy succulent.  The texture of the scallops  was ethereal along with some nicely sauteed vegetables.  The peanut sauce was not my favorite part.  The filet mignon went so fast I barely was able to grab a scrap but when I did it was quite good.  The steak frites while not very adventurous, was a nicely prepared steak sliced and fanned out on the plate with a substantial amount of fries.  We also shared an order of brussel sprouts.  They contained a wonderful pork product in them and they were perfectly cooked and separated into leaves.For desert we shared lavender and peppercorn ice cream.  Everyone loved it but me.  go figure.

We drank a Foppiano Cabernet, 05 that was nicely balanced, with dark cherry flavors and a Budini Malbec, 06 that had classic cassis and black raspberry flavors and very light tanins.

Jacks has 12 dollar entrees at the bar on Sunday nights.  I ' m going back to try those out next.

breakfast in the city

I live in Baltimore.  I'm not from here, I was born just north of here on the other side of the Mason Dixon line.  I have also lived further south.  But for the last 8 years, I have made my home in the fine crime mecca of Baltimore.  For the most part, I like it here.  Great markets, good restaurants, lots of interesting people.

Having spent a good portion of my life in the restaurant business i have a love/hate relationship with restaurant reviewers.  I think it's awful presumptious and in some cases really pretentious to post your thoughts about one or two experiences at a resaurant.  Folks that start a restaurant sink their hearts, souls and a ton of money into those ventures.  They at least need a grace period to get their shit together and even after that, if you have a bad experience, you should talk to the resaurant not a blog full of people.  So I am not going to be talking about my eating experiences in those kind of terms.  I may mention places that I have eaten but I plan on only expanding about the positive parts.  

Over the holidays I did a lot of breakfasting out.  The breakfast that I enjoyed the most was at the  very popular Miss Shirleys.  I loved loved loved loved loved it.  I had the Southern Slammer!  It was fantastic.  Throw caution to the wind, eggs in the face of cholesterol.  This little sammy has  Applewood-Smoked Bacon, Avocado, White Cheddar Cheese, Egg and Fried Green Tomatoes in between two slices of puzzlingly healthy pumpernickel.  My friends had various verions of  eggs benedict.  one with crab and fried green tomatoes, the other with smoked salmon, potato cakes and chive hollandaise.  The coffee was fresh hot Seattles Best and the service great.  (a chic named Michael)

I can not believe it took me this long to try out Miss Shirleys.  I have ben a fan of Alonso's consistent, anti-budget busting food  since i moved to the city just shy of 8 years ago.  But that's another story

soon

New Years!!

Staying home on this champion of amateur holidays?  Here are some sparling wine ideas that will get you some bubbles for cheap.

Banear Prosecco NV from Veneto Italy $9.99-$11.99

Straw-yellow with green highlights. Lightly sparkling, with thin elegant
bubbles. Fruity and floral with a pleasant buttery backdrop. Dry, good
acidity, well balanced. With less alcohol and fewer bubbles than fully
sparkling wines, this is an ideal aperitif. Chill and enjoy now to 2010 with
hors d’oeuvres, poultry and seafood.

Don Conde Cava Brut NV Catalonia Spain $9.99-$11.99
A terrific value, this sparkler offers fresh, clean citrus and crisp apple
flavors. This is a zingy Cava to open and enjoy on any occasion. The perfect
bottle to make mimosa's with. {Dry, Citrus, Apple, Medium-bodied}.

Gruet Demi-Sec NV New Mexico $13.99-$15.99
Yes, there are vineyards in New Mexico just outside of Albuquerque. The
subtle fruity aromas and the freshness of the Demi-Sec drives the character
of this light bodied, semi-dry sparkling wine. The palate carries through
with a creamy sensation and vivid flavor of green apples, ripe pears,
pineapple and a hint of mineral. It is delicate, lively and elegant! Toasty
bouquet, light and elegant with good acidity, exotic fruit flavors. A bubbly
wine for those with a sweet taste!

I know whatt you're thinking...wine from New Mexico yea right.  Get over yourself. This stuff is good!

easy to drink easy to pay for.  Paul Laurent wasn't smoking crack when he bought these vineyards.

Falafel Snackdown!

Intrigued by the Banh mi Snackdown by Eating Asia I pondered what local delicacy could elicit the same kind of salivatory response.  Like a brick hitting my head it came to me....the Sunday market Falafel....the finest street food Baltimore has to offer all dolled out between the rich and the homeless.

The guy that runs this stand goes around before the market opens and buys the best local stuff he can get his hands on.  So every week it's a new falafel!  A few weeks ago, at the peak of summer, my falafel had raw beets, raw corn, peaches, greens, squash, and my favorite hot and spicy pickles from a stand around the bend.

Last week it was filled with fresh pea shoots, and the peaches had morphed into apples.

I get my falafel "with everything" which includes yogurt sauce, hot sauce...

and the secret ingredient, honey.

duck duck quack quack cooking class

So I have finalized the menu for my cooking class on the 19th.  We are going to tackle 3  preparations of duck! 

The first course will be

seared duck breast in rice paper wrappers, mint, daikon, spinach and rice noodles with 

sweet hot chili sauce.

second course

salad of roasted kabocha squash, and stir fried vegetables with crispy duck

sesame, ginger, soy and chili dressing

third course

roasted duck legs with dried fruits and star anise served with

sticky rice

for dessert since I'm not much of a desert person, we will have simple Thai style coconut cake

accompanying beverages will probably be some sparkling wine, mimosas and either a Riesling or Gruner Veltliner.

                                    

smoked tofu tostadas

I am locked in a constant personal dilemma.  I am an avid animal lover.  As such I have a deep respect for all things living.  So how then, I ask myself, can I justify eating meat.  My favorite meat used to be lamb, that was until I ended up living across the street from a sheep farm.  The baby lamb's were so unbelievably cute.  I did not eat lamb for 6 years.  So a couple of years ago, I gave up meat entirely. Well almost.  I continued to eat fish and seafood.  and once in a while mashed potatoes with gravy.  I lasted about a year.  It ended at the same time as I was taking my first Thai cooking class.  Kasma is fairly vocal about her disdain for vegetarians and anyone that won't eat fish or fish sauce.  You can't really blame her.  Fish sauce is the foundation of Thai food.   

So what did I get out of my year of meatlessness?  I doubt I saved any money.  I hope I spared a few animal lives.  All in all I think the single biggest gain from my experience was my invention of the smoked tofu tostada.  

This is how it starts.  

1.  salsa- this time of year, I make my own

Chopped tomatoes

Cilantro

S & P

Chilis

lime juce

red onion

garlic

It's a basic recipe made to highlight the flavor of the tomatoes

2.  Then I make guacamole

avocadoes

cilantro

sambal

cumin

garlic

lime juice

S & P

3. Put your tostada shells in the oven at 200 degrees

4.  Spread your favorite cheese on the tostadas (I used goat)

5.  Top with guacamole

6.  Then comes the smoked tofu ( weighted and drained on paper towels and then smoked)

(I use the stove top smoker)

Top with the salsa

completely guilt free eating.  No dead animals, mostly good fats, and awesome flavor

smoked salmon cakes with sweet and sour chili sauce and garlic chard

I was totally inspired last week by watching Hubert Keller on PBS making salmon burgers. His technique was really cool.  He sliced  skinless salmon filets about 3/4's to an inch thick.  He had aluminum foil folded to that thickness.  He laid the salmon filets on their side putting one inside the other and then finishing by cutting the third filet in half                                                                                                 

Wrap the aluminum foil around the salmon and twist into a circle.  Chef Keller made "burgers" out of his but I decide to smoke mine in my trusty stove top smoker

I smoked the salmon"cakes" over apple wood.  They were really smokey. I served them on top of swiss chard done in the wok with sliced garlic I allowed to toast slightly.  On top, I put a sweet and sour chili sauce.

1/2 cup vinegar

1/3 cup sugar

1/3 cup diced sweet peppers

1 or 2 thai chilis 

Bring to a boil and simmer a few minutes

The sauce tied it together.  sweet, smokey, hot.  what could be better?

 

Panzanella

Check out these beauties.  These are assorted heirlooms except for the tiny sweet 100's.  I don't think they are an heirloom variety.  In Maryland, the best time for tomatoes is August and September.  Sometimes, depending on the weather, the tomatoes start tasting overripe even if they are not.  It happens in September.  Nature's way of saying, "you've had enough"  

Aside from sliced with salt this may be my favorite tomato recipe. I started making it when I worked  at Bella Monte.  It was very popular there. 

Panzanella

 2 cups peeled diced assorted heirloom tomatoes (leave the seeds in)

 3 pitted olives chopped (your choice)

 a scant teaspoon of capers, rinsed and chopped

 4 or 5 leaves of Thai basil chiffonade (you can use what ever fresh basil you have)

 1 Tbsp chopped Parsley optional

Generous amounts of salt

Cracked black pepper to taste

1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

1 1/2 Tbsp red wine vinegar

3  slices of Italian bread, diced (day old bread is perfect)

1. Salt and pepper the peeled diced tomatoes and allow to stand for 5 minutes or so.

2. add the remaining ingredients except the bread.  Toss together

3. Add the bread cubes

4. Allow the mixture to sit for another 5 minutes

5. Serve

I put this one in a ring mold with a little extra olive oil and some balsamic.  A lot of folks actually look at this recipe and think, " eewwww! soggy bread"  But actually, the bread ends up being the best part.  Last night I took this Italian master piece and bastardized the hell out of it by adding a grilled hamburger and a slab of goat cheese.  I loved it.

my house

I live in a totally cool old house.  It's almost 100 (I might be having a party)  built in 1910 it's a craftsman style bungalow. I have lived here for just over 7 years. I love old houses.  They have stories to tell.

 I am currently at a crossroads.  Some of the things I want to do would require me to have more outdoor space.  I want big vegetable gardens and the thing I want most is a wood burning oven.  I've wanted one for close to 20 years.  I don't think I'll be able to have one here since I live within the city limits.  The first time I went to Italy I will never forget the smell of smoke in the air.  On the ride from the airport in Milan we drove past a place that makes wood burning ovens.  I immediately started plotting how to get one.   I have a cool picture of another trip.  Here it is

when I look at this picture, which was taken in Florence, I imagine a kitchen with the wood burning and the smell of roasting chickens and bread baking.  So I'm at a crossroads because my dream involves that oven and that garden.  

Can you imagine my house sitting in that big Italian garden??  ha ha wouldn't that be odd?  1910 vs the 1600's