Slashfood http://www.slashfood.com Slashfood http://www.slashfood.com/media/feedlogo.gif Slashfood http://www.slashfood.com en-us Copyright 2009 Blogsmith, LLC. The contents of this feed are available for non-commercial use only. Blogsmith http://www.blogsmith.com/Turkey Chili - Feast Your Eyeshttp://www.slashfood.com/2009/11/27/turkey-chili-feast-your-eyes/http://www.slashfood.com/2009/11/27/turkey-chili-feast-your-eyes/http://www.slashfood.com/2009/11/27/turkey-chili-feast-your-eyes/#commentsFiled under: ,

Turkey chili.

Turkey chili. Photo: Elana's Pantry, Flickr.

You feasted on turkey yesterday -- and might be doing so for the next week if your leftovers are particularly abundant. While the flavors of the Thanksgiving spread are delightful, after a few days you may find your taste buds tiring of turkey sandwiches and reheated leftovers of the same dishes. Why not reimagine your leftovers by adding different flavors altogether?

That's exactly what Elana's Pantry did. Her Turkey Chili recipe is a simple, fuss-free concoction, combining typical Thanksgiving leftovers (turkey, carrots, onion and broth) with roasted poblano peppers, cumin and oregano with some zingy fresh cilantro. An added bonus for post-Thanksgiving bloated bellies: the flavorful, brothy serving will satisfy without stuffing.

Become a member of the Slashfood Flickr pool to get a shot at having your photos featured in Feast Your Eyes.

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]]>ElanasPantryfeast your eyesFeastYourEyesthanksgiving leftoversThanksgivingLeftoversturkey chiliTurkeyChiliAlexa Weibel2009-11-27T10:00:00+00:00The Traveling Foodie - Guatemala's Chichicastenango Markethttp://www.slashfood.com/2009/06/24/the-traveling-foodie-guatemalas-chichicastenango-market/http://www.slashfood.com/2009/06/24/the-traveling-foodie-guatemalas-chichicastenango-market/http://www.slashfood.com/2009/06/24/the-traveling-foodie-guatemalas-chichicastenango-market/#commentsFiled under: , ,

AOL Food's photo editor Rachel Been travels the world in search of deliciousness. Her most recent journey brought her to Guatemala's Chichicastenango Market.

Chichicastenango

    Chichicastenango Market in Guatemala is one of the most vibrant markets in the country. Every Thursday and Sunday, vendors from around the region travel to Chici to set up varietal stands surrounding the Church of Santo Tomás. The assortment of food ranges from fresh produce to deep-fried chicken, and is available for only a few quetzales. ...

    Rachel Been

    A family of women make tortillas from blue- and white-corn masa, a dough paste composed of pestled corn. The women diligently pat out the thin, small dough discs throughout the day. Ten tortillas will cost you 2 Quetzales (50 cents).

    Rachel Been

    Fresh carrots and vegetables line the walls of the indoor produce market.

    Rachel Been

    At the end of one of the main roads, a group of women sell clucking hens and other animals such as dogs and turkeys out of woven sacks.

    Rachel Been

    And eventually those clucking chickens end up deep-fried in the market's dining area, served with fresh beans and tortillas.

    Rachel Been

    Fresh watermelons are covered with a plastic tarp that attracts swarming flies, apparently attempting to camouflage themselves as vagrant seeds.

    Rachel Been

    Women sell freshly cut onions in the indoor produce market.

    Rachel Been

    The market is so vast that for every item of produce, there are dozens of vendors offering the same food. Onions, avocados, carrots and tomatoes are some of the most popular items sold throughout Chichi.

    Rachel Been

    Outside of the produce market, vendors sell nuts and seeds out of buckets used for seasonings and snacks.

    Rachel Been

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]]>Chichicastenango marketChichicastenangoMarketguatemalarachel beenRachelBeenthe traveling foodieTheTravelingFoodieRachel Been2009-06-24T17:00:00+00:00Sea Urchin Chic at Mareahttp://www.slashfood.com/2009/05/01/sea-urchin-chic/http://www.slashfood.com/2009/05/01/sea-urchin-chic/http://www.slashfood.com/2009/05/01/sea-urchin-chic/#commentsFiled under: , , , ,

urchins
Sea urchins, on the face of it, are not likely candidates for the title of Sexiest Seafood. Their spiny shells make them look like porcupines of the sea, and give little hint of the outrageously creamy, briny decadence that they contain. But this saffron-hued roe, whose complex, salty-sweet-sharp flavor profile is beloved by chefs, is now making diners swoon.

David Chang has been using sea urchin roe on his menu at Momofuku Ssam Bar and Ko for a long while, and now Michael White is making them the star of his menu at his new restaurant, Marea. A great article tomorrow in WSJ. magazine provides a peek at both White's droolingly anticipated new restaurant and at sea urchin, which is pictured in all of its spiny, golden glory.

Learn about the delectably slimy urchins after the jump.

Continue reading Sea Urchin Chic at Marea

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]]>convivioitalianmareamichael whiteMichaelWhitesea urchinsea urchinsseafooseafoodSeaUrchinSeaUrchinsRebecca Flint Marx2009-05-01T16:00:00+00:00Lovin' Forkful - Feast Your Eyeshttp://www.slashfood.com/2009/04/24/lovin-forkful-feast-your-eyes/http://www.slashfood.com/2009/04/24/lovin-forkful-feast-your-eyes/http://www.slashfood.com/2009/04/24/lovin-forkful-feast-your-eyes/#commentsFiled under: , , , , , ,

pie
This may be the cherriest piece of cherry pie we've ever laid eyes on.

The cherries are so big and bright and alive they're practically winking at us. We know food porn when we see it, and in this case we applaud Danny from Food in Mouth for going there somewhat fearlessly, transforming a slightly garish-looking slice from the Little Pie Company into this bit of in-your-face decadence. The best part is the plastic fork: Actual silverware would have implied that the pie was consumed in a delicate and restrained manner. If this photo is any indication, it certainly was not. "This," the photo seems to say, "is pie made for gobbling." Preferably on a checkered picnic blanket, crumbs flying everywhere, or standing in front of the fridge scooped into the palm of your hand when silverware just seems too far away.

[Via Food in Mouth]
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]]>cherry pieCherryPiedessertRebecca Flint Marx2009-04-24T10:00:00+00:00Get Your Goat - Feast Your Eyeshttp://www.slashfood.com/2009/04/23/get-your-goat-feast-your-eyes/http://www.slashfood.com/2009/04/23/get-your-goat-feast-your-eyes/http://www.slashfood.com/2009/04/23/get-your-goat-feast-your-eyes/#commentsFiled under: , , , , ,

cheese
Looking at this cheese is a little like meditating. It's the most serene, perfect thing we've laid eyes on in the past week -- a little cloud floating innocuously against a blue (OK, teal) sky. The knife at its side hints at its imminent demise, but really, who aside from vegans or the lactose-intolerant wouldn't want to partake of the cheese's ample charms? Former Chez Panisse pastry chef David Lebovitz, the author of numerous wonderful cookbooks and a Paris resident for the past seven years, purchased this silver dollar-sized disc of Rocamadour (a raw goat's milk fromage) for a dinner party he was throwing for friends. While much of his accompanying commentary extols the virtues of the comté he also bought, it's this diminutive beauty that has us dreaming of baguettes, a drizzle of honey and deeply discounted Air France tickets.

[Via David Lebovitz]
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]]>air franceAirFrancecheesechez panisseChezPanissedavid lebovitzDavidLebovitzparisrebecca flint marxRebeccaFlintMarxrocamadourRebecca Flint Marx2009-04-23T10:00:00+00:00Burger, Pop and a Shake - Feast Your Eyeshttp://www.slashfood.com/2009/04/14/burger-pop-and-a-shake-feast-your-eyes/http://www.slashfood.com/2009/04/14/burger-pop-and-a-shake-feast-your-eyes/http://www.slashfood.com/2009/04/14/burger-pop-and-a-shake-feast-your-eyes/#commentsFiled under: , , , , , , , , , ,

burger
This photo makes us want to skip on down to Johnny Rocket's, pop the Shirelles on the stereo and sip milkshakes two-straws-to-a-glass -- all before 10am.

But of course what looks to be a simple burger and mac combo platter with a sweet side of Moxie is actually a duck-pork patty slathered with seven-pickle relish accompanied by a gorgonzola and cheddar mac 'n cheese. We're pretty sure that's not what the Fonz was noshing on back in the day. Gotta love that fresh strawberry shake served up in a laboratory glass, too. Click over to the snapshot to learn what those lunchboxes have printed on 'em, part of the cutesy theme at Seattle's Lunchbox Laboratory.

If you're not in our Flickr pool yet it's time to jump in, start tagging photos "slashfood" and show off your skills already. And tell us if this pic makes you get a burger for lunch.
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]]>americaamericanburgerduckmilkshakeporkseattleAlex Van Buren2009-04-14T10:00:00+00:00Wild Blue Shrimp With Salsa Verde - Feast Your Eyeshttp://www.slashfood.com/2009/03/27/wild-blue-shrimp-with-salsa-verde-feast-your-eyes/http://www.slashfood.com/2009/03/27/wild-blue-shrimp-with-salsa-verde-feast-your-eyes/http://www.slashfood.com/2009/03/27/wild-blue-shrimp-with-salsa-verde-feast-your-eyes/#commentsFiled under:

sauteed wild blue shrimp with salsa verde

These wild blue shrimp have our tummies growling. Sara's Kitchen made them for her parent's 34th wedding anniversary. She details how she used just a little olive oil, salt, pepper and juice from a Meyer lemon for the saute. But we think it's the paring with an herb salsa verde (made from Suzanne Goin's "Sunday Suppers at Lucques" recipe) that really makes the dish pop.

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]]>feastfeast your eyesFeastYourEyesSara Bonisteel2009-03-27T10:00:00+00:00Padma's Leggy Product Placementhttp://www.slashfood.com/2009/03/26/padmas-leggy-product-placement/http://www.slashfood.com/2009/03/26/padmas-leggy-product-placement/http://www.slashfood.com/2009/03/26/padmas-leggy-product-placement/#commentsFiled under: ,

Nothing comes between Padma Lakshmi and her bacon.

The "Top Chef" host's commercial for the Western Bacon Thickburger at Carl's Jr. and Hardee's is something out of a bad soft-core food porn movie. The first part of the spot is innocent enough as Lakshmi -- identified as an "author/culinary expert" -- breezily drifts through a farmer's market carrying a plastic bag filled with veggies.

It's when she hits what looks like a New York City stoop, hikes up her skirt and pulls out her fast-food feed bag that things turn nasty (and so henceforth we'll call her Ms. Lakshmi).

In voice-over, Ms. Lakshmi describes her teen adventures sneaking out to scarf down a Western Bacon before dinner as we consumers of pop culture see spicy sauce dripping all over her hand and her leg. Fear not for her pumps! Ms. Lakshmi's just keeping the sauce there for later -- finger-lickin' later.

"It's a beautiful love song to food," Ms. Lakshmi says in a press release ... if your idea of a beautiful love song to food is Warrant's "Cherry Pie."

(The Slashfoodie in us couldn't get beyond the suspension of disbelief. If Ms. Lakshmi's supposed to be in New York, where DID she get that Western Bacon? The closest Hardee's is 60 miles away in Shirley, N.Y. That's what we'd call a winning Quick Fire challenge.)

[Via Grub Street]

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]]>food pornFoodPornpadma lakshmiPadmaLakshmiSara Bonisteel2009-03-26T17:30:00+00:00Heart-Stopping Cuisine - The Wave of the Future?http://www.slashfood.com/2009/02/19/heart-stopping-cuisine-the-wave-of-the-future/http://www.slashfood.com/2009/02/19/heart-stopping-cuisine-the-wave-of-the-future/http://www.slashfood.com/2009/02/19/heart-stopping-cuisine-the-wave-of-the-future/#commentsFiled under: , , , , , , , , ,

A few years ago, as most of the fast-food chains were working on offering healthier alternatives to their customers, Burger King made a big splash by going in the opposite direction. Rather than making smaller meals, they made larger ones; rather than cutting back on meat, salt, and lard, they packed on the fat and the flavor. At the time, I remember thinking that this might just be pure genius. After all, angry fat and carb junkies needed a place to visit, and Burger King quickly positioned itself as the go-to retailer for self-destructive food.

Since then, Burger King has been joined by a few other companies that boldly, proudly feature the worst cuisine imaginable. Chili's, for example, offers the Smokehouse Bacon Triple "the Cheese" Big Mouth Burger with Jalapeno Ranch Dressing. This one burger, with over 2,000 calories and almost 5,000 mg of sodium, contains the entire recommended daily caloric intake for the average person, combined with more than twice the recommended sodium. Similarly, Bob Evans' Stacked and Stuffed Caramel Banana Pecan Hotcakes have 1,543 calories, 77 grams of fat, and 2,259 mg of sodium in each order.

Continue reading Heart-Stopping Cuisine - The Wave of the Future?

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]]>Heart Attack foodHeart Attack GrillHeartAttackFoodHeartAttackGrillQuadruple Bypass BurgerQuadrupleBypassBurgerBruce Watson2009-02-19T16:00:00+00:00Exotic Pastries Done Righthttp://www.slashfood.com/2009/02/12/brownie-points-x-rated-cupcakes-exotic-pastries-done-right/http://www.slashfood.com/2009/02/12/brownie-points-x-rated-cupcakes-exotic-pastries-done-right/http://www.slashfood.com/2009/02/12/brownie-points-x-rated-cupcakes-exotic-pastries-done-right/#commentsFiled under: , , , , , , ,

My wife, who generally avoids anything related to baking, recently showed me a hidden side of her personality. Although she doesn't like to bake, she apparently finds endless joy in the world of bizarre and/or ill-conceived confectionary. Having begun with a mild addiction to Cake Wrecks, she has progressed to ever-more-advanced levels of culinary schadenfreude. And so it is that I now find myself receiving regular e-mails ordering me to check out bizarre food sites.

In a recent e-mail, my wife sent me to a site that features one woman's experiment with risqué cupcakes. Having seen more than my fair share of poorly-executed erotic confectionary, not to mention South Carolina's famous Gaffney Butt water tower, I thought that I had grown jaded. I imagined that nothing could impress me, and that attempts at rendering the nude human form in sugar and frosting were hopeless.

I was wrong.

While I would caution that these cupcakes aren't for everyone, I think that they were very nicely rendered. If you are of an adventurous bent, I strongly advise you to wait until your boss leaves the room, then direct your browser to the Brownie Points website. Enjoy!
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]]>Brownie PointsBrowniePointsCake WrecksCakeWrecksErotic cupcakesEroticCupcakesExotic cupcakesExoticCupcakesGaffney ButtGaffneyButtBruce Watson2009-02-12T16:00:00+00:00Martha Stewart's Cooking School, Cookbook of the Dayhttp://www.slashfood.com/2008/10/30/martha-stewarts-cooking-school-cookbook-of-the-day/http://www.slashfood.com/2008/10/30/martha-stewarts-cooking-school-cookbook-of-the-day/http://www.slashfood.com/2008/10/30/martha-stewarts-cooking-school-cookbook-of-the-day/#commentsFiled under: , , , , ,

cover of Martha Stewart's Cooking SchoolOkay, hardcore Stewies, this is it: the moment you've been waiting for. Martha Stewart is ready to teach you -- really teach you -- how to cook. Of course she's been doing so for a couple of decades and counting, but in this book the Martha School reaches its figurative and literal peak. Martha Stewart's Cooking School: Lessons and Recipes for the Home Cook is just exactly what the title claims: an Escoffier-style cooking tome, organized as cooking schools are and presented with flawless clarity and beauty for all cooks, regardless of experience. The only requirements for admission are interest in the subject matter and the intention to use what you learn.

As cooking school should, class commences with kitchen basics: equipment and technique. Here we learn by description, instruction and illustration the fundamental skills that every cook should bring to the kitchen. Pop quiz: name and describe the six basic vegetable cuts. Extra credit: what are two of the four specialty cuts? The answers are on pages 14 -- 15, clearly and beautifully illustrated by both technique and result. And so we go through herbs, spices, onions, garlic and citrus before arriving, as we would in a classroom, at stock and soup.


Continue reading Martha Stewart's Cooking School, Cookbook of the Day

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]]>Cookbook of the dayCookbookOfTheDaycooking classMarth StewartMartha Stewart Cooking SchoolmarthastewartMarthaStewartCookingSchoolMarthStewartEric Diesel2008-10-30T19:00:00+00:00Big Tex: The ultimate in deep-fried foodhttp://www.slashfood.com/2008/10/29/big-tex-the-ultimate-in-deep-fried-food/http://www.slashfood.com/2008/10/29/big-tex-the-ultimate-in-deep-fried-food/http://www.slashfood.com/2008/10/29/big-tex-the-ultimate-in-deep-fried-food/#commentsFiled under: , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

I generally try to eat wisely and well. I avoid greasy foods, turn my back on excessively processed ingredients, constantly rail against high fructose corn syrup, and try to eat all my veggies. Unfortunately, however, just as my day-to-day dietary Dr. Jekyll is upright and intelligent, I also have a culinary Mr. Hyde, who comes out when I find myself confronted with particularly delectable deep fried delicacies. Generally, this isn't much of a problem, as the fried food in my neighborhood mostly consists of unmentionable pig parts and the occasional codfish pancake. Moreover, since I've moved away from Southwest Virginia, I am no longer tempted by the Salem Fair, a horrifying assemblage of rides, petting zoos, and oil-soaked goodies that used to be the highlight of my year.

Recently, however, I came across a website for Big Tex, the Texas State Fair. While I will always maintain a warm spot for the food options at Salem, it is painfully clear that Southwest Virginia's yearly orgy of deep-fried wonders pales in comparison to the pure, unrestrained genius of Texas' chefs. With items like "Chicken Fried Bacon," "Texas Fried Jelly Belly Beans," and "Fried Pop Rocks Fundae," the Lone Star state has staked an unquestionable claim to national fryolator dominance. I was particularly impressed by "Fire and Ice," a battered, deep-fried pinapple ring that is covered in banana-flavored whipped cream that has been dipped in liquid nitrogen.

Liquid nitrogen? These guys are GODS.

Anyway, the fair is over for this year...but I'm looking ahead to next fall. Only 330 days to go!
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]]>Bix TexBixTexFried BaconFried Jelly BeansFried Pop RocksFriedBaconFriedJellyBeansFriedPopRocksSalem FairSalemFairTexas State FairTexasStateFairBruce Watson2008-10-29T14:30:00+00:00Spotted Dick and other foods that sound dirty but aren'thttp://www.slashfood.com/2008/10/25/spotted-dick-and-other-foods-that-sound-dirty-but-arent/http://www.slashfood.com/2008/10/25/spotted-dick-and-other-foods-that-sound-dirty-but-arent/http://www.slashfood.com/2008/10/25/spotted-dick-and-other-foods-that-sound-dirty-but-arent/#commentsFiled under: , , ,

heinz spotted dickAs someone who lived in England for three years, I have encountered many a food with a shocking name.

I'm pretty sure the English are naming things "bangers and mash" and such on purpose, but there are many foods with dirty names that don't seem as self-aware.

For your pleasure and education, I present to you:

The List of Foods that Sound Dirty but Aren't

Continue reading Spotted Dick and other foods that sound dirty but aren't

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]]>bangers and mashBangersAndMashdirtyfeaturedfood namesFoodNamesfunnyfunny food namesfunny namesFunnyFoodNamesFunnyNamesspotted dickSpottedDickAnnie Scott2008-10-25T15:00:00+00:00Sofrito's $1,000 meal: Soooooo ten minutes ago!http://www.slashfood.com/2008/10/16/sofritos-1-000-meal-soooooo-ten-minutes-ago/http://www.slashfood.com/2008/10/16/sofritos-1-000-meal-soooooo-ten-minutes-ago/http://www.slashfood.com/2008/10/16/sofritos-1-000-meal-soooooo-ten-minutes-ago/#commentsFiled under: , , , ,

Toward the end of his life, Salvador Dali prefigured the Jeff Koons-style artistic sellout by signing thousands of pieces of blank paper, which unscrupulous publishers subsequently used to print out cheap copies of his art. As equally unscrupulous art buyers bought the prints, Dali stated "If there are people who want to sell poor quality limited reproductions of my work, and others want to pay too much money for them, they deserve each other."

With this in mind, I have to admit that I'm sad to see the end of the ultra-expensive food trend. Although I was never able to buy the $1,000 bagel or the $150 burger, I've enjoyed poking fun at the ultra-arrogant people who have produced ridiculously expensive food itemsand the insanely rich people who have shelled out cash for them. Unfortunately, with the stock market bouncing up and down like Richard Simmons on coke, it seems unlikely that anybody will be in the mood to lay down the price of a plane ticket on a saffron-stuffed burrito or a bowlful of gold-plated chicken wings.

That having been said, every trend must give a few final convulsions before it is officially dead, and the super-pricey food trend is no different. With that in mind, I hereby salute Ricardo Cardona, the head chef at Sofrito, a New York restaurant. In what is either a concerted effort to kill this trend or the biggest case of self-delusion since Madonna tried acting, he has released a $1,000 paella. For that princely sum, patrons get a huge bowl of arborio rice, saffron, extra virgin olive oil, white asparagus, piquillo peppers, black truffles, sea scallops, baby squid, baby eel, mussels, cherrystone clams, king crab legs, mini-chorizo sausages, octopus, lobster tails, prawns, and Spanish ham.

Cardona has positioned the $1,000 paella as a celebration of Spanish cuisine; presumably, this means that Spanish cuisine basically consists of throwing a whole bunch of fairly pricey ingredients into a bowl and trying to charge ten times what they are worth. For that matter, since when are Alaskan prawns, King crab legs, Maine lobster, and locally-grown shellfish distinctively Iberian? On the other hand, only the coarsest of pedants would question Cardona's dedication to his culture when Sofrito is giving 20% of the proceeds from the paella to a nonprofit group that helps Latino youngsters. After all, when one subtracts $200 from a price tag of $1,000, that leaves Sofrito with a mere $800 gross from the meal. After taking out the $100 that the restaurant probably paid for the ingredients, their profit sinks to a mere $700. How can any restaurant possibly expect to stay in business with that kind of profit margin?
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]]>1000paellaRicardo CardonaRicardoCardonaSofritoBruce Watson2008-10-16T17:30:00+00:00Cucina Italiana: Great pictures, awful foodhttp://www.slashfood.com/2008/10/08/cucina-italiana-great-pictures-awful-food/http://www.slashfood.com/2008/10/08/cucina-italiana-great-pictures-awful-food/http://www.slashfood.com/2008/10/08/cucina-italiana-great-pictures-awful-food/#commentsFiled under: , , , , , , ,

In the past, I have been accused of being excessively generous towards the products that I have reviewed. This is actually a fair criticism; while I try to be very honest about the foods that I discuss, I also tend to focus on the positive and sometimes downplay the negative. Beyond that, I usually only review products that I really like, going with the idea that ignoring lesser foodstuffs is probably the best possible critique.

That having been said, I feel obliged to offer an analysis of La Cucina Italiana, a slick, beautiful monthly that touts itself as "Italy's premier food and cooking magazine." Recently, my wife, who is a huge fan of Italian cuisine, bought us a subscription, hoping that it would inspire me to expand my Tuscan table offerings. As soon as I opened the first issue, I was immediately impressed: the magazine was filled with beautiful pictures, interesting columns, and intriguing recipes. Admittedly, some of the editor in chief's remarks struck me as being self-aggrandizingly douchy, but I assumed that this was another example of the "Christopher Kimball Syndrome." This disease, named for the second-rate George Will clone who publishes Cook's Illustrated, is based in the mistaken impression that editors of low-circulation cooking magazines are actually celebrities, fit to comment on the broader world. While I disagree, I can't really fault La Cucina's Michael Wilson for his misunderstanding. After all, if food celebrity has somehow oozed into the world of food journalism, the fault probably lies in the system, not the lemmings who have gotten sucked into it.

I could forgive La Cucina Italiana its smug, superior tone if the recipes were actually any good. Unfortunately, they run the gamut from moderately passable to utterly vile. The best recipe I've tried was a basic method for roasting tomatoes. While fairly generic, it was also easy and produced a flavorful ingredient that beautifully perked up pasta. On the other hand, of the two caper dishes that I tried, one looked like dog food and tasted like the sink trap at a Korean restaurant. The other was merely bland, which made it vastly superior by comparison.

Unfortunately, we have a subscription to the magazine, which means that it will continue to occupy a proud place in our bathroom magazine rack, offering beautiful pictures of meals that border on the inedible. On the bright side, if kitchen wizardry doesn't do the trick, then high-end food porn might be handy for convincing our friends that my wife and I are serious about cooking!
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]]>Christopher KimballChristopherKimballCooks IllustratedCooksIllustratedGeorge WillGeorgeWillLa Cucina ItalianaLaCucinaItalianaMichael WilsonMichaelWilsonBruce Watson2008-10-08T15:30:00+00:00When life gives you lemons, make lemonade. When life gives you testicles, make...?http://www.slashfood.com/2008/10/02/when-life-gives-you-lemons-make-lemonade-when-life-gives-you/http://www.slashfood.com/2008/10/02/when-life-gives-you-lemons-make-lemonade-when-life-gives-you/http://www.slashfood.com/2008/10/02/when-life-gives-you-lemons-make-lemonade-when-life-gives-you/#commentsFiled under: , , , ,

When I was a kid, a Hungarian restaurant opened in my neighborhood. As this was the seventies, and my family lived in the culinary wasteland of Northern Virginia, every new eatery was an occasion for celebration. Consequently, the mood was high as my parents took my sisters and I to consume levesek, paprikas, and other delicacies. Unfortunately, my father felt obliged to give me a bite of his appetizer, which involved smooth meaty sausage-ish things. They tasted yummy, but when my father told me where they came from, my appetite evaporated.

In the years since, I've often regretted that I didn't take more time to savor the testicle dish that my father saw fit to share with me. The Hungarian joint only stayed open for a few months, and "prairie oysters" are not particularly common in American restaurants. To my knowledge, I haven't eaten any testicles since that evening, although I've long since developed both the taste and the bal...um...the intestinal fortitude necessary to try the dish.

With this in mind, I was particularly interested in the World Testicle Cooking Championship, a yearly event that is held in Belgrade, Serbia. Boasting chefs from around the world, the Championship highlights the latest discoveries and advances in testicle cooking. Recently, in fact, Australia caused quite a bit of a stir when it bragged about the culinary charms of kangaroo testicles yet failed to field a cooking team. Apparently, testicle cookery is not for the faint of heart!

Barring a sudden influx of money, I probably won't be going to the Championship any time soon, but Ljubomir Erovic, a renowned testicle chef, has recently released Cooking with Balls, an e-cookbook devoted to testicle cooking. Featuring recipes for testicle pizza, testicles [sic] pie, and barbecued testicles, the book also has some pretty hair-raising illustrations. Seriously, one video that demonstrated how to "peel" testicles made me a little light headed. That having been said, maybe I should leave the preparation to a professional. Now, if I can only find a good testicle joint...
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]]>ballsCooking with BallsCookingWithBallsHungaryLjubomir ErovicLjubomirErovicprairie oystersPrairieOystersSerbiatesticlesBruce Watson2008-10-02T17:00:00+00:00I'll put a spell on you: I finally got to try the Voodoo maple donut!http://www.slashfood.com/2008/09/26/ill-put-a-spell-on-you-i-finally-get-to-try-the-voodoo-maple-d/http://www.slashfood.com/2008/09/26/ill-put-a-spell-on-you-i-finally-get-to-try-the-voodoo-maple-d/http://www.slashfood.com/2008/09/26/ill-put-a-spell-on-you-i-finally-get-to-try-the-voodoo-maple-d/#commentsFiled under: , , ,

A few weeks ago, I wrote a post about Voodoo Donuts' Bacon-Maple Bar. I tried to maintain some level of journalistic integrity, pretending to be ambivalent about the seductive wonder that the mass of sugar, greasy dough, and smoky pork held for me. I claimed a certain level of disgust, even as I frankly admitted my attraction. In many ways, it was like describing my feelings for Courtney Love.

Well, no more. I can no longer pretend to have even the smallest amount of distance from this wonderful agglomeration of fat, sugar, and empty calories. Last night, at a Oregon food showcase, I met the owners of Voodoo donuts and tasted a modified, East-coast version of their Frankenstinian confection. Sad to say, it was absolutely everything that I expected: delicious, seductive, and oh so bad for me.

The NYC Bacon Maple Bar began with a locally-produced basic donut that both my wife and Voodoo Donuts' President assured me was extremely close to the real thing. It was then slathered in a maple frosting, liberally sprinkled with filberts, and given a final dollop of bacon. Simultaneously salty, sweet, crunchy, and fluffy, the finished product was everything that a "pancakes and bacon with tons of maple syrup" man could want. It was heaven.

Unfortunately, the Voodoo Donuts guys are heading back out West shortly, which means that the Bacon Maple Donut and I have had to part ways. Even so, it has given me a reason to contemplate a visit to Portland, Oregon. Now, I just have to wait for airline tickets to come into range...
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]]>bacon maple barbacon maple donutBaconMapleBarBaconMapleDonutVoodoo DonutsVoodoo DoughnutsVoodooDonutsVoodooDoughnutsBruce Watson2008-09-26T15:00:00+00:00Fair winning Muppet Show cakehttp://www.slashfood.com/2008/07/01/fair-winning-muppet-show-cake/http://www.slashfood.com/2008/07/01/fair-winning-muppet-show-cake/http://www.slashfood.com/2008/07/01/fair-winning-muppet-show-cake/#commentsFiled under: ,

Muppet Show themed cake with several of the charactors sculpted out of rolled fondant icing.
I was absolutely amazed when one of my fellow Slashfoodies, Kellye Agreda, sent me a link to this cake. I spent quite a lot of years as a cake decorator, and I know how much time and effort goes into a thing like this.

This cake took first place at the Kentucky State Fair in 2007. Can you imagine? The craftsmanship and level of detail on this cake is nothing short f breath taking. I've seen a couple shows On Food Network about cake decorators preparing cakes for a big competition, so I know they can spend some serious time making this type of cake. I wonder if the cake was made by a professional or by a hobbyist? Either way, I wonder how much they charge for a birthday cake?

If you want to see more views of this cake, check out Adam Newbold's Flickr set. I could stare at these images for long periods of time if I wasn't careful. So be careful, and make sure you have a few minutes!
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]]>Adam NewboldAdamNewboldcakedecoratingFlickr setFlickrSetKentucky state fairKentuckyStateFairMuppet ShowMuppetShowShayna Glick2008-07-01T09:00:00+00:00Frozen custard culthttp://www.slashfood.com/2008/05/13/frozen-custard-cult/http://www.slashfood.com/2008/05/13/frozen-custard-cult/http://www.slashfood.com/2008/05/13/frozen-custard-cult/#commentsFiled under: , , ,

Carl's Frozen Custard
I think perhaps I have been living under a rock for the last 30 years of my life. Because until last Sunday, I had never heard of the awe inspiring Carl's and I had never tasted frozen custard. First, some history on how I discovered this delicious gem. My husband and I decided to take a road trip to Fredericksburg, Virginia. The hour long drive was inspired by the opening of a Sonic Drive-In. I know this may sound silly to some, but I am originally from Texas, and Sonic is my lifeblood. Since moving to D.C. in 2000 I have desperately longed for a Sonic within driving distance.

After stuffing ourselves with Sonic's cheeseburgers, cherry cokes, tater tots, and a coconut cream pie shake, we thought it might be prudent to do some walking. We made our way to charming historic downtown Fredericksburg, which is filled with a multitude of antique and junk shops. After perusing the shops and walking off our calorie fest we decided it was time to head back to D.C. On our way out of town we saw Carl's, or should I say, the line to Carl's. We slowed down to see what could be causing this group of about sixty people to stand in the hot sun. One look at the top of the building and we knew this place was special. I slowed down and my husband grabbed a place in line as I found parking.


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]]>custardFrozen_Custardice creamIceCreamRoad TripsRoadTripsWendy Buckley2008-05-13T18:01:00+00:00The divine iced beverage: Julep Iced Teahttp://www.slashfood.com/2008/05/12/the-divine-iced-beverage-julep-iced-tea/http://www.slashfood.com/2008/05/12/the-divine-iced-beverage-julep-iced-tea/http://www.slashfood.com/2008/05/12/the-divine-iced-beverage-julep-iced-tea/#commentsFiled under: , , , ,

Julep Iced Tea

The other day, I blogged about my awesome Big Book of Backyard Cooking. In the review, I mysteriously mentioned my favorite iced tea recipe, but I didn't want to go into detail until I could share pictures of all the tasty ingredients. So, over the weekend I ran to the store twice (because I lazily didn't check my food supply before going the first time), and whipped up a nice batch of my absolute favorite iced beverage: Julep Iced Tea.

Instead of bourbon, which keeps many a folk sauced at the Kentucky Derby, this recipe uses a super-potent batch of English Breakfast tea. It takes a little more effort than your usual iced tea, but it's well worth the effort. Julep Iced Tea is super tasty, with that immediate kick of fresh mint and the sweet, sugary aftertaste of lemony tea. Check out the recipe after the jump and the gallery below.

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Continue reading The divine iced beverage: Julep Iced Tea

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]]>iced teaIcedTeajulepJulep iced teaJulepIcedTealemonmintmint julepMintJulepteaMonika Bartyzel2008-05-12T16:33:00+00:00