Best Sopa Azteca Ever...aka Tortilla Soup

Tortilla soup is one of those things that I almost have to order when I see it on a restaurant menu. I have no idea why, but the concept of it always sounds good to me. Inevitably I am almost always let down and I really have no idea why I continue to order it. When I saw Ourcookquest send a tweet out with a link to Rick Bayless's recipe for Sopa Azteca...aka Tortilla Soup, I knew I had to make it.

For those of you unfamiliar with Rick Bayless, he is a James Beard award-winning chef, restaurateur, cookbook author, and television personality as the winner of Top Chef Masters as well as the host of "Mexico - One Plate at a Time". His restaurants in Chicago are some of my favorites in the country. Frontera Grill and Topolobampo have been around since the 1980's and still have a line out the door every day of the week. His latest creation, XOCO, might be my favorite one yet.

But I digress, back to the Sopa Azteca....Here's the link to Rick Bayless's official Sopa Azteca recipe. I didn't follow it exactly so continue on to how I made the best tortilla soup I've ever tasted. It just happened to also be one of the easiest soups I've ever made.

My rendition of Rick Bayless's Sopa Azteca

Ingredients    * means see cook's notes.at the end of the recipe

1 large dried New Mexico chile, stemmed and seeded *
1 dried chipotle chile, stemmed and seeded *
One 15-ounce can pureed tomatoes
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 medium sweet onion, sliced 1/4-inch thick
5 garlic cloves, peeled & smashed
2 quarts smoked turkey stock, homemade
1 pound shredded turkey leftover from Thanksgiving * 

For garnishing
1 large ripe avocado, pitted, flesh scooped from the skin and cut into 1/4-inch cubes
Your cheese of choice, shredded (e.g. Mexican melting cheese like Chihuahua, quesadilla or asadero), to taste
Roughly broken tortilla chips, to taste
1/2 cup Mexican crema, sour cream or creme fraîche for garnish (I skipped this)
1 large lime, cut into 6 wedges, for serving (I skipped this but wish I would have tried it)

Heat the oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add the onion and garlic once the oil is hot and cook until caramelized, about 7 minutes.

While the onions are cooking, lightly toast the chilis over the flame of your gas stove or in a pan on your electric stove. Don't be afraid to get it in the flame, that charring adds good flavor depth to the soup. Once the chilis are toasted, break them into small pieces and put them in a blender along with the tomatoes. Once the onions and garlic have caramelized, add them to the blender and process until everything is completely smooth*. 

Return this mixture to the pan over high heat and cook until it is the consistency of tomato paste. Add the turkey stock and simmer the mixture for 15 minutes.

While the soup is simmering, garnish each bowl with tortilla chips, avocado, and cheese.

Just before serving, add the turkey meat to the soup, taste and season with salt and pepper, if necessary.

Fill each bowl with soup and serve with sour cream, lime, and additional tortilla chips on the side.

Enjoy!


Cooks Notes
* See the comments in Rick's recipe if you don't have dried chilies - chili powder can be substituted - or better yet, head to your local spice vendor and pick up some fresh dried chili's. My favorite spice vendor in Cleveland is Spice Hound
* You can use chicken stock instead of turkey, but good quality stock is very important. Don't waste your time or money on the stuff they sell at the grocery store - use water instead if you don't have homemade stock
* Chicken or any other meat can be substituted for turkey
* To ensure an amazing, velvety texture, I highly recommend using a Vita Mix blender. Using a lessor blender, you are likely to leave some larger chunks of the chili pepper that are not appealing to eat.

This One's for Smoking!

I forgot to mention one other type of thermometer that is a must have in my arsenal - a wireless smoker thermometer.

Last year for Christmas I put something on my list that I didn't even think existed - a wireless thermometer with dual probes, one to display the temperature of meat and the other to display the temperature of the smoker. To take it a step further, I wanted it to have an alarm that alerted me not only when the smoker reached a certain temperature, but also if it dropped below a certain temperature. My awesome sister and brother in-law found the only one that exists that I am aware of, the Maverick RediChek Remote Wireless Smoker Thermometer, available for $40.77 on Amazon.

Maverick RediChek Remote Wireless Smoker Thermometer 

As you can see in the picture above, there are two probes. The shorter probe gets fixed in the metal bracket on the grill grate and provides you with the air temperature inside your smoker. The other probe gets inserted into the pork butt, beef brisket, turkey, or whatever cut of meat you are smoking. The device in the picture that displays 225 stays with the smoker and transmits both temperatures to the remote device that can receive the signal up to 100 feet away. The remote also allows you to set alarms for both the food and air temperature.

There are a couple of design flaws, in my opinion. The on/off switch on the Transmitter is located behind the battery door which means you have to take off the battery door to access it. It's quick and easy to do but still a poor design. You also have to turn on the remote before turning on the transmitter (or is it the other way around), otherwise it won't receive the signal. Setting the alarms is also annoying. The device only has one "adjust" button that scrolls up one degree at a time so if it's set to 180 degrees and you want to change it to 140 degrees you have to scroll past the max setting 370 degrees around to the minimum setting, and if you miss it or forget to push enter you have to go all the way around again. It's pretty annoying so if I can pay close attention to the remote I often will skip the alarms and monitor it manually. But it's really nice for those times when I'm doing a million other things getting ready for a party or even more often when I start the smoker and go back to bed.

Despite these design flaws it's a great addition to your arsenal if you are serious about smoking and BBQ but haven't invested in an expensive smoker that is easier to maintain the temperature. I use a Weber Kettle grill for my smoking and it's gotten much easier since I got the Maverick RediChek Remote Wireless Smoker Thermometer.
 

REVIEW: Taylor Digital Dual Temperature Thermocouple and Infrared Thermometer

I mentioned a couple months ago CSN Stores asked me to review a product from one of their 200+ stores. I was given $55 to spend on anything I wanted to try. I went back and forth many times before finally deciding I needed a new digital thermometer. Apparently I am pretty rough on thermometers. Over the past couple years, I've gone through the following thermometers:

 

3 Different $20-30 Probe Thermometers:

 

 One Digital "Instant Read" 

One cheapo meat thermometer

I really liked the probe style thermometers I've used. It's so convenient to be able to put the probe in a roast before you put it in the oven and have it monitor the temperature constantly and even have an alarm alert you when it reaches a certain temperature. On the flip side, I've had lots of problems with the  the wire connecting the probe to the device fraying. I'd say they've lasted me  about 6-9 months before it became frayed and stopped working. After going through my first two probes, I decided to try a cheap digital "instant read" like pictured above. It worked ok, but there was really nothing instant about it. It takes at least 10-15 seconds to get an accurate reading. That might not seem like a huge deal, but when I'm working on a 500 degree grill or trying to maintain a consistent temperature in my smoker, time is of the essence. So I finally decided to break down and buy a true instant read thermometer.

Taylor Digital Dual Temperature Thermocouple and Infrared Thermometer

CSN didn't have a lot of high end digital thermometers for me to pick from so I decided to get the Taylor Digital Dual Temperature Thermocouple and Infrared Thermometer. Here are the stats provided by Taylor:

Features:

• Digital infrared dual temperature thermometer
• Infrared temperature range: -27° F to 428° F and -33° C to 220° C
• Thermocouple temperature range: -67° F to 630° F and -55° C to 330° C
• Min and max and hold features
• Step down tip for a small puncture in foods
• Batteries and nylon case included
• Overall dimensions: 6.25" H x 2.13" W x 2.38" D

The device is pretty straightforward to use. If you want to us the infrared to test the surface temperature of a pan you simply hold down the infrared button and point it at the pan you want to rest. It's actually kind of fun to play with the infrared setting and I've started charting temperatures when I am sauteing, sweating, etc to test the results at different temperatures.

While the infrared is fun to play with, the probe is the real reason I bought the thermometer. I was sick of burning my hand waiting for the cheaper "instant" read thermometers to get up to 160 degrees when I was grilling chicken - usually at least 10 seconds. I was hoping this Taylor model would literally be instant but it still takes 2-3 seconds to come up to temperature. It's definitely a big improvement over this $10 Taylor model I also own, but so far I don't think it's worth the additional $90 in cost.

Do you have a thermometer you really love? Am I missing out on some great features of this model that I just haven't discovered yet?

Full disclosure: I was provided with $55 towards the purchase of any item from any of CSN Stores websites. The total cost of the thermometer was $99.99, I was responsible for the difference in price. The opinions written here are all my own.

Dinner in the Dark: A Benefit for VeggieU

I don't have time to do a full post on this awesome event, but I wanted to make sure you all heard about the latest great idea from the great chefs in Cleveland.

Dinner in the Dark will be a once-a-month dining event in which local chefs will cook a no holds barred, anything goes, "open mic, jam session for chefs" that will benefit the chef's charities of choice. For the first Dinner in the Dark, Chef Jeff Jarrett (North End, Hudson), Chef Brian Okin (Verve Restaurant, Cleveland), and Chef Ellis Cooley (AMP150, Cleveland) will prepare you a 'mystery' dining experience and all proceeds will support VeggieU.

What: Dinner in the Dark
Where: Verve Restaurant, 1332 Carnegie Ave
When: October 11th at 7pm
How: Tickets $50 call 216-664-5500

I am really bummed that work will prevent me from being able to attend the first Dinner in the Dark but I definitely hope to attend one soon. If you go, please let me know all the details and feel free to rub in how good it was!

Eat Local Challenge

Did you know it's Local Food Week in Cleveland?

 
Local Food Week is being put on by Local Food Cleveland, an action network for everyone who is passionate about growing a thriving local food economy and culture around Cleveland. It includes a lot of great events including farm tours, movies, potlucks and restaurant dinners just to name a few.

I try to support our local restaurants and farmers everyday. If you've been reading my blog from the beginning you probably know I buy most of my meat & produce from local farmers markets, auctions or directly from the farmers. What I can't get from farms, I buy from Heinen's, a local grocer that also happens to sell a lot of local products. Whether I'm in Cleveland or traveling for work, I always try to seek out restaurants with farm to table menus. One of the goals of my blog is to encourage all of you to do the same!

I encourage you all to take the Local Foods Week "Eat Local Challenge":

1. Eat at least one local meal each day of the week and post photos and recipes on Local Food Cleveland
2. Attend at least one Local Foods Week event
3. Support your local farmers markets, restaurants and retail shops

Looking for more ideas how you can participate in addition to these events? Mike over at Dad Cooks Dinner gave a bunch of suggestions of how he will be "competing" in the Eat Local Challenge.

How will you bring home the gold medal in the Eat Local Challenge?

GIVEAWAY: 13th Annual L’AMOUR DU VIN, A Premier Wine and Food Event

You might remember back in April I gave away tickets to the annual Silver Spoon awards in support of the Arthritis Foundation. More than 40 million people in the US have some form of arthritis, and many have chronic pain that limits daily activity. Rheumatoid arthritis, the most disabling form of arthritis, affects more than 2 million people in the US. Multiple people in my family are severely affected by arthritis so this is a cause that hits close to my heart, and my joints!

With that being said, I'm happy to tell you about the latest fundraising effort by the NE Ohio chapter of the Arthritis Foundation. On Thursday, October 7, 2010 they are hosting the 13th Annual L’Amour du Vin, a Premier Wine and Food Event at the Avon Oaks Country Club. The event with feature a sampling of fine wines and cuisine provided by 14 westside eateries.

There are three ways to get tickets:

1. Order them online
2. Call (800) 245-2275, ext 100 
3. Enter to win a free pair of tickets on my blog! See how to enter at the end of this post

The highlight of the event is definitely the VIP Lounge featuring martini pairings by Chef Ellis Cooley from AMP 150. If you haven't tried Chef Cooley's food yet, you are missing out. He is doing huge things in the Cleveland culinary scene and this will be an amazing opportunity to meet him and sample his delicious food. The event also includes a unique silent auction, live music and the opportunity to win fabulous prizes.

In addition to AMP 150, other restaurants participating include:

    * 87 West at Crocker Park (Nice wine bar)
    * Avon Oaks Country Club
    * Cabot Cheese
    * Catherine's Chocolates (AMAZING CHOCOLATES!!!)
    * Flavor the Town
    * The Good Fork (I've heard great things)
    * Jake's on the Lake/Savannah Bar & Grill
    * Kiedrowski's Simply Delicious Bakery
    * Legacy Restaurant & Grille
    * Red Gables Mesquite Grill (Check out their website - looks like a great plac)
    * Moosehead Grill
    * Oberlin Inn
    * Whistlestop Restaurant


Event proceeds will support the mission of the Arthritis Foundation:  to improve lives through leadership in the prevention, control and cure of arthritis and related diseases.


Blocks of tickets and sponsorship packages are also available. Business/cocktail attire suggested.

There are four ways to enter to win tickets here on my blog:

1. Leave a comment telling me about your favorite local farm or farmers market
2. Become a "fan" of Live to Cook at Home on Facebook and post the giveaway on your wall
3. Follow me on Twitter and Tweet about this giveaway
4. Sign up to receive new posts via email using the form on the top right of this page

Be sure to leave a comment for each entry and leave your email address in the comment so I know how to get a hold of you. Good luck and thanks for supporting the Arthritis Foundation!

Braised Pork Belly (p. 216)

I'm obviously falling behind in my attempt to cook through Michael Symon's cookbook Live to Cook, but I'm not ready to throw in the towel just yet. I actually made this dish in early August but I haven't had time to write about it until now.

Michael's love of pork is obvious if you've eaten at any of his restaurants, watched his TV shows, or follow his Twitter account so it's amazing the Braised Pork Belly (p. 216) is the first pork dish I've made from his cookbook. Obviously this is one recipe that didn't disappoint!

I actually made a double batch so what you see above is 2-two pound bellies.

Beautiful pork belly from Bluebird Meadows Farm

This pork belly was one of the last cuts I had left from the pig we bought last fall. Like all the other cuts, the belly was beautiful and tasty! If you haven't tried the pork from Bluebird Meadows, you don't know what you are missing! You can find Bluebird Meadows every Saturday at the Crocker Park Farmers Market or you can reach them via telephone at (440)610-5994, tell them Dave sent you!

 

Fresh pork bellies rubbed down with Symon's rub

The first step of making the belly is to rub it down with a mix of salt, sugar, coriander, red pepper flakes, and orange zest and refrigerate it for 24 hours. I was amazed by the affect of the rub on the bellies. They were much tighter after 24 hours in the mixture. I could tell the curing process had begun. After 24 hours, I removed the bellies from the fridge and rinsed off the seasonings.

Ready to go in the oven

It was weird to pull out my dutch oven and turn the oven on for 5 hours on an 85 degree day in August. But I had pork belly that needed to be cooked so I pushed on. I put the onion, carrot, garlic, bay leaf, white wine, cinnamon sticks, and chicken stock into a dutch oven, brought the mixture to a simmer and let the flavors mingle together. After 15 minutes or so I put the bellies each into their own dutch oven and made sure they were covered with the liquid.

Tender and ready to eat

The book says to let the belly cook covered for 7 hours, or until very tender. I checked them after about 5 hours and both were already done. I left them sit on the stove overnight to cool and then moved them into the fridge in the morning.

I stored the bellies in their poaching liquid for a couple of weeks as we enjoyed the delicious meat from time to time. I had the best of intentions to use the pork belly to make the Fresh Bacon with Watermelon & Haloumi, (p. 219), the Frisee with Crispy Pork Belly Croutons (p. 220), the BBLT (p. 58), or at least the Pork Belly with Polenta and Seared Mushrooms (p. 217) but unfortunately my busy summer schedule never allowed me the time to make any of them. That doesn't mean we didn't enjoy the pork belly. I used it to make delicious BLT's, a few different pasta dishes with fresh summer veggies, with eggs for breakfast, and of course we munched on plenty of it by itself.

Cost

I will provide the approximate cost for each recipe in the book, as well as the source of the products used. 

This recipe is a little difficult for me to estimate because I used fresh pork belly from the pig I bought last year. I think I've seen pork belly selling for about $2.50 a pound at the Westside Market recently so I will use that to calculate the cost of the belly. It cost about $8 to make Iron Chef Michael Symon's Braised Pork Belly (p. 216).

Pork belly - $5 (Bluebird Meadows Farm)

Orange - $1

Chicken stock - $1 (Homemade, of course. Use water if you don't have homemade)

Misc (salt, sugar, coriander, crushed red pepper flakes, carrot, garlic, bay leaf, wine, cinnamon stick) - $1

Butternut Squash Soup

I will be doing a review of a kitchen gadget soon, compliments of CSN Stores. In return for plugging their website selling a wide variety of dining tables and other dining room furniture, they are giving me $55 towards the purchase of anything from any of CSN's 200+ stores. What should I get???

Has it really been more than a month since I last blogged? I tell you what, I don't know my favorite bloggers have time to cook, blog multiple times per week, spend time with their family and friends, and maintain a full time job. Major props go out to all of them.

I love reading Michael Ruhlman's blog. He posts frequently and I get more cooking tips and tricks from him than just about anyone else. His post today inspired me to make butternut squash soup. I frequently make butternut squash soup but I typically use a recipe that takes more than an hour to prepare and has a long list of ingredients. Don't get me wrong, it's delicious, but lately I've been more about efficiency & simplicity in cooking rather than elaborate preparations.

Following Ruhlman's idea, I started off by dicing a large butternut squash and a bunch of cloves of garlic from our Plum Creek Farm CSA.

No, that's not cantelope, it's butternut squash

I sauteed the squash in butter in batches, making sure not to over crowd the pan. When each batch was about half way done, I added some of the minced garlic and seasoned everything with salt.

Once all the squash was done, I added it to a soup pan and covered it with 3 cups of homemade chicken stock (don't bother with the store bought stuff, use water if you don't have homemade stock). I simmered this mixture for about 20 minutes and then added it to my Vita Mix blender. Once it was velvety smooth, I tasted it and seasoned it with salt and some fresh sage and thyme, also from Plum Creek Farm.

I didn't use cream, butter or anything else to finish the soup. The soup was delicious enough with out it so I decided to keep it healthy, and let the flavors of the butternut squash and homemade stock shine.

Check back again soon as I'm working on a post about Iron Chef Michael Symon's Braised Pork Belly and will have a give away to an awesome foodie / charity event Both posts should be up this week!

Vegetarian "Spaghetti and Meatballs"

After being pretty burned out from cooking for the past 2 months, I am finally starting to get back into it again. I even hope to have a new post from Michael Symon's Live to Cook in the next couple of weeks. Just a hint but it involves a few pounds of pork belly.

What I'm about to write about might make it so Michael Symon never speaks to me again - a vegetarian dish! If you've been reading my blog for a while, you probably know I am a big supporter of local farmers and this is the second year we've belong to Plum Creek Farm's CSA. That means we have a fridge full of fresh veggies all summer long. Earlier this week, Michael Ruhlman, who describes himself as, "...someone who all but baths in animal protein and pork fat," created this simple - it took me less than 30 minutes to make - and satisfying recipe to take advantage of the garden's bounty - Vegetarian "Spaghetti and Meatballs."

As I was cooking dinner, my wife walked into the room and asked what I was making. I described the dish as Vegetarian "Spaghetti and Meatballs" with julienned zucchini, yellow squash, and carrots as "spaghetti noodles" and cherry tomatoes as "meatballs." She sighed and asked where the carb, protein and meat were. Fortunately we were both very pleasantly surprised how delicious this dish turned out. Check out Ruhlman's blog to see how he made it or read below to see how I adapted his recipe.

Photo courtesy of Donna Ruhlman via ruhlman.com

Vegetarian "Spaghetti and Meatballs”
Slightly Adapted from Ruhlman’s Recipe - http://ruhlman.com/2010/08/sauteed-zucchini.html

3 tablespoons butter (I would use less next time)
1 shallot
1/3 cup red onion
salt, to taste
6 garlic cloves
1 zucchini
1 yellow squash
2 large carrots
Crushed red pepper, to taste
freshly ground pepper
Freshly grated Parmesan cheese, to taste
Tomatoes, preferably cherry tomatoes (“meatballs”)

Using a mandolin or good knife skills, julienne the zucchini, squash, and carrot.

Finely chop the onion, shallot, and garlic.

Melt half the butter in a skillet over medium heat. 

Add shallot, red onion, and garlic and salt and cook for a couple minutes until translucent,

Add the zucchini, squash, carrot, and additional butter. Season with salt, pepper, and crushed red pepper and saute until tender, 2 to 3 minutes. 

Plate the “spaghetti noodles” (squash & carrot mixture), grate Parmesan cheese over the top, and finish with the “meatballs” (cherry tomatoes or other tomatoes).

Enjoy!

Michael Symon’s Tomato Salad with Red Onion, Dill, and Feta (p. 77) - Guest Post!

There are very few foods I don't enjoy but olives are one of them. I keep trying them because I really want to like them but no matter where I've had them, including some of my favorite restaurants in Cleveland like Lolita, Bar Cento, and The Greenhouse Tavern, I've never enjoyed any of the kinds I've tried. There is just something about the briny, bitter taste that turns me off. So when Alicia, from the blog Poise in Parma, contacted me to see if she could do a guest post with one of the recipes from Michael Symon's Live to Cook, I happily obliged when she told me she wanted to make Michael Symon’s Tomato Salad with Red Onion, Dill, and Feta (p. 77). So I hope you enjoy Alicia's write up and be sure to head over to her blog Poise in Parma to follow her writing about dining out, working out, and her amazing weight loss (over 120 pounds!)  Thanks again for checking this one off the list for me Alicia!


Greetings from Parma! I’m Alicia – the blogger over at Poise in Parma. While Dave is away, I offered to take good care of his blog – at least for one post! (editors note: this was supposed to be posted while I was on vacation last week but I decided to have an internet free week and am posting it a week late.)

If you are a frequent reader of Poise in Parma, you know that I consume a ridiculous amount of vegetables. It was no surprise when my uncle’s girlfriend asked me to bring a veggie tray to their recent summer cookout. In addition to your standard fare, I wanted to make a splash with a really fun summer salad. I knew exactly what I wanted to bring: Michael Symon’s Tomato Salad with Red Onion, Dill, and Feta (p. 77).

As the event planner for one of my previous employers, I was lucky enough to meet Mr. Symon at a very unique, private home fundraiser. At the end of the evening, I enjoyed the spread of marvelous dishes he and his staff prepared. Yes, the infamous Mac and Cheese with Goat Cheese and Rosemary was there. Sure, he was serving directly from a full roasted pig laid out on the kitchen island in the kitchen. There was an entire kitchen table full of desserts made by Cory Barrett for my taking. But what did I want more of? That tomato salad. I was giddy to see it included in the cookbook. So let’s get crackin’.

Ingredients sans EVOO, salt and pepper

I had some issues finding some heirloom tomatoes, so I did with what I could find at Heinen’s. I started by slicing the red onion to “paper thin” thickness on a mandolin. I then soaked them in an ice water bath for a bit longer than the recommended 10 minutes (i.e. how ever long I took to shower that day).

I started by making the salad’s dressing by combining the garlic, salt, pepper, red wine vinegar and EVOO in a large mixing bowl. (Yes, I’m going to call it “EVOO”. My apologies to you who hate acronyms, because I’m personally a fan of both them and Rachael Ray. Moving on…)

After draining and drying the red onion, I added them, the bell pepper, cucumbers and olives to the mix.  Since I had the mandolin out and managed not to harm myself, I decided to use it to cut the pepper and cucumbers. I rough chopped the olives.

Chef Symon suggests letting that mix marinate before adding the rest of the ingredients. I, however, went ahead and added the dill, mint, tomatoes and feta right away. (I’m impatient, was running late and still had to get ready!) As a note: while I love tomatoes, I HATE all the extra juice, so I also gave my tomatoes a good drying out before adding them to the mix.

Again, Chef Symon recommends serving this immediately, but mine had the chance to relax on a 40 minute drive to the far East side of greater Cleveland. Personally, I think the extra wait time gave all the ingredients the chance to marry together nicely.  The veggies keep it light while the olives and feta give it the heartiness it needs to fill your belly. I even managed to snag the leftovers (the recipe made a decent amount) and added them to some egg noodles and chicken for a great pasta toss the next day.

This was quite the big hit at the cookout and was a great alternative to your typical fare. As the peak of tomato season is upon us, I recommend you taking advantage of the abundance of the fruit for this tasty seasonal salad.

Cost
Dave provides the approximate cost for each recipe in the book, as well as the source of the products used.  It cost approximately $16.74 to make Iron Chef Michael Symon's Tomato Salad with Red Onion, Dill, and Feta (p. 77). (I had plenty of leftover herbs after making this and admit to “sampling” a few of the olives before making the salad.) I purchased all ingredients for this recipe at the stores as indicated after their cost.

• Garlic: $.10 from Heinen’s
• Red onion: approximately $ .50 from Marc’s
• Red bell pepper: $ .75 at Heinen’s                            
• Cucumber: free from Grandma’s garden
• Pitted whole kalamata olives: $2.97 for about 1/3 pound from olive bar at Heinen’s
• Dill: full package cost $2.79 at Giant Eagle
• Mint: full package cost $2.39 at Heinen’s
• Tomatoes: spent approximately $4.25 at Heinen’s
• Crumbled feta: $2.99 from Trader Joe’s                 
• Pantry Staples (salt, pepper, vinegar, olive oil): on the house

A big thanks to Dave for letting me stop by and share this experience with his readers! I hope you all will stop by Poise in Parma to continue to keep up with the Cleveland cooking love!

Iron Chef Michael Symon News

Michael Symon's newest TV show, Cook Like an Iron Chef, debuts tonight at 10pm on the Cooking Channel, a new station from the creators of the Food Network. From the Cooking Channel's Website:

Iron Chef Mike Symon is breaking out of Kitchen Stadium to share his creative process and techniques for turning your favorite secret ingredients into unique, daring and delicious food. Chef Symon arms you with an arsenal of dishes that deliver perfect 10's for taste, presentation and creativity to help you do battle for the discerning judges at your own kitchen table.

According to Symon, "It's essentially a show for the people who've watched Food Network forever and are ready to learn something more advanced or more creative."

He sees the show being for serious foodies who are ready to take the next step as a home cook. Of course the only way to take that next step is to get in the kitchen and cook, so after you watch the show, be sure to pick your favorite recipe from Live to Cook, head to your local farmers market for some fresh, local ingredients, and get in the kitchen and cook.

The Cooking Channel is 158 with Time Warner Cable in Avon Lake - no HD available yet - check with your provider to find out what station it is in your area. Unfortunately this station does not come with the standard service that we have with Time Warner so I won't be able to see the show. Hopefully it will show up on Hulu.

Update I: The Cooking Channel is 456 with AT&T Uverse - Thanks Sarah! Can you pull any strings to get Uverse to serve Avon Lake?

Update II: The Cooking Channel is 232 with Direct TV. Thanks Shawnee's Girl! 

Update III: The Cooking Channel is 127 with Cox Communications. Thanks DaniP! 

I also wanted to mention a charity event Michael Symon is hosting at his flagship restaurant, Lola Bistro, Sunday, August 1st from 6-9 p.m. Food for Life will benefit three charities that are near and dear to Symon - Autism Speaks, Share Our Strength and Urban Community School. Symon will be hosting a long list of culinary all-stars from Cleveland and across the country including:

• Michael Schwartz - Michael's Genuine, Miami, FL
• Vinnie Dotolo & Jon Shook - Animal, Los Angeles, CA
• Jonathan Waxman - Barbuto, New York, NY
• Koren Grieveson - Avec, Chicago, IL
• Michael Sheerin - Blackbird,Chicago, IL
• Mary Sue Milliken - Border Grill, Santa Monica, CA and Las Vegas, NV
• Marc Vetri and Jeff Michaud - Vetri, Osteria and Amis, Philadelphia, PA
• Anne Burrell - Food Network, New York, NY
• Joey Campanaro - The Little Owl, New York, NY
• Jonathan Sawyer - The Greenhouse Tavern, Cleveland, OH
• Rocco Whalen - Fahrenheit, Cleveland, OH
• Paul Minillo - The Baricelli Inn, Cleveland, OH
• Nate Appleman - Pulino's Bar & Pizzeria, New York, NY
• Eric Williams - Momocho, Cleveland, OH
• Scot Jones - Vegiterranean, Cleveland, OH

In addition to amazing food and mingling with some of the countries best chefs, the event will also feature music, entertainment, and auctions. It's sure to be a great event and I'm disappointed that I will be out of town that day.

Tickets are $200, with VIP tickets, full tables and special sponsorship opportunities available. A $1,000 VIP ticket includes an invitation to a private dinner at Symon's home on Saturday, July 31, and a party at the Greenhouse Tavern after the benefit. For more information and to buy tickets online, go to join.strength.org/foodforlife or call 1-888-273-6141.

2010 Veggie U Food & Wine Celebration

My beautiful wife on the grounds of the beautiful Culinary Vegetable Institute

My wife was the lucky winner of a pair of tickets  to the 2010 Veggie U Food & Wine Festival on the grounds of the Culinary Vegetable Institute. (Thanks again Cleveland Foodie!!!)

It was HOT under the main tasting tent. Fortunately they had fans misting water and Jeni's Ice Cream to cool us down.

The Food & Wine benefit is an annual benefit featuring gourmet cuisine prepared by chefs from all over the country, wines from top vineyards, cooking demos, and an exclusive auction, all benefiting Veggie U. Veggie U's mission is to promote the well-being of children through a healthy lifestyle.  Veggie U is dedicated to the creation and distribution of curricula nationally, with a focus on making wise food choices, combating adolescent and juvenile disease, and attaining an understanding of sustainable agriculture.

 Some of the beautiful produce on display courtesy of the Culinary Vegetable Institute (sorry, the photo doesn't even begin to give it justice)

Tickets weren't cheap at $175, but considering the great cause and number of renowned chefs, serving great food with pristine ingredients from the Culinary Vegetable Institute, this event was worth the cost of admission.

We took a lot of pictures as we made our way through the stations and I thought I'd share some of our favorite dishes with you.There was obviously lots of great food but one dish was our runaway favorite - Chef Michael Deligatta's squash blossom stuffed with fire roasted heirloom sweet corn and Silver Lake chevre with spicy peach chutney.

Easily the best dish of the festival - Chef Michael Deligatta's Squash Blossom Stuffed with Fire Roasted Heirloom Sweet Corn and Silver Lake Chevre with Spicy Peach Chutney

 

The blossoms were lightly fried and stuffed with a delicious, creamy filling. This is the only station we went back to for seconds thirds. The chef said these are on his summer menu so if you want to try them head down to the Inn at Versailles.

My second favorite came at the hands of Chef Jamie McFadden of Cuisiniers in Winter Park, FL and was the most unlikely candidate - A Study of Peas.

Peas three different ways

Anyone care for a champagne cocktail featuring peas? Bring it on! Skeptical at first, I could have drank this light, refreshing drink all day. It was the perfect compliment to the heat. They also served a cold spring pea soup and a sweet pea and fava bean bruschetta. All three dishes were executed perfectly, letting the quality of the Chef's Garden peas shine through. If Chef Jamie ever goes on Iron Chef, he should hope for peas as the secret ingredient!

There were lots of other great dishes, but these two really stood out from the crowd, in my opinion. Here are some shots of our other favorite dishes:

 

Dumpling of Braised Grass-Fed Beef, Maytag Bleu Cheese, Heirloom Tomoato Confit by Chef Leo Bushey of Perfect Production Fine Catering

Short Ribs with Radish and Turnip Salad by Chef Tony Dee of Barton G in Miami Beach

Roasted Summer Corn Salad with Smokey Rubbed Hanger Steak by Chef Dave Martin from Top Chef Season 1

Beautiful artwork carved out of fruits and veggies

It was amazing how quickly he was able to create these!

 Chilled Watermelon & Cucumber Salad by Chef Rachel Spieth from Three Birds in Lakewood

Porcini Mushroom Dusted Lambchops over Heirloom Tomato & Shaved Fennel Salad with 12 yr aged Balsamic by Chef Ray Comisky of Capital Grille

 

 Beet-i-ful Terrine, Mascarpone Cream Beet Cherry Puree, Mache by Chef Tim Maxim

Gunpowder Bison Flank Steak "Bahn Mi" with Fois Gras Butter and Chef's Garden Produce Fixin's Bar by Chefs Beej Flamholz and Erica Wides

"Fixin's Bar"

Unfortunately my camera battery died half way through the evening so I didn't capture the rest of the food we sampled. Needless to say, we didn't go home hungry. The event also featured wine tasting demos with master sommeliers - we missed these, wish they started a little later as we were too busy eating to make it to these sessions, live music, food demos with Martha Foose, Jonathon Sawyer from The Greenhouse Tavern, and Dave Martin & Lee Ann Wong from Top Chef.

If you are interested in supporting the mission of Veggie U, please consider making a tax-deductible donation.

Did you attend the 2010 Veggie U Food & Wine Celebration? What was your favorite dish???

Squash Blossoms Stuffed with Goat Cheese

Wow, has it really been almost a month since I posted? I know, as Metromix producer Janet Nguyen told me recently, I've been a really bad blogger. Worse yet, I haven't even been cooking much in the past month. June has been a blur for me. It was an extremely busy month at work and I got pretty burned out on cooking after all the work I put into the rib burnoff (which I didn't win but more importantly we raised lots of money). Fortunately, things have calmed down a little at work and I am finding some motivation in the kitchen.

I went to the Crocker Park Farmer's Market this past Saturday for the first time since May and saw some beautiful squash blossoms for sale.

Fresh squash blossoms 

I had never eaten squash blossoms but I heard they were pretty good. They weren't cheap at $5 for 5 blossoms, but we were having some people over for dinner on Sunday so I thought I'd pick some up for everyone to try. I also noticed a new (to me) vendor, The Ornery Goat, selling goat's milk & cheese at the Crocker Farmers Market. They were sampling feta, four different types of chevre (chive & onion, chipotle, garlic dill, and plain), and fresh goats milk. I tasted them all and decided on the chipotle and chive & onion. The goat milk was also very interesting. It was very rich (like whole milk) and had a slight tang to it. It is definitely worth checking out next time you are at the market.

 The assembly line

I decided to stuff the squash blossoms with goat cheese, coat them in flour, and deep fry them. The flowers were a little delicate but I was able to successfully fill each of the blossoms with cheese and twist the petals together to seal them up.

Battered squash blossoms waiting to go in the fryer

Next, I dipped them in egg and then tossed them in flour until they were coated. I put a pot with an inch or two of canola oil over medium heat. To test when the oil was hot enough, I dropped a little flour in and it fried the flour without burning it so in went the squash blossoms. I didn't have enough oil to cover them completely so after a minute or so I flipped each blossom over to cook the other side. After both sides looked nice and crispy, I removed each blossom.

Fried squash blossom stuffed with Ornery Goat Chevre

The squash blossoms turned out pretty good. The goat cheese paired perfectly with the delicate squash taste of the blossom. I especially liked the chipotle chevre as it gave a little heat to the dish. If I had it to do over again, I probably would experiment with a batter rather than just the egg / flour coating. I forgot to season the flour so the crispy exterior was on the bland side. 

If you like to try new foods or are looking for something unique to serve at a party this summer, stuffed, fried squash blossoms are sure to make your be a hit and make for great conversation too.

Have you ever tried squash blossoms? What is your favorite recipe?

Giveaway - Stove Monkey's Yumm 2.0 Tickets @ The Mercury Lounge

The Stove Monkey's are at it again! This Monday, June 7th at 8pm they are hosting the second rendition of Yumm at Mercury Lounge. Did you miss the first Yumm? Check out what you missed via Green Dog Wine's review of it. The second rendition of Yumm promises to be even better than the first as it will feature molecular cocktails courtesy of Mike Gulley, in addition to some amazing Stove Monkey's molecular gastronomy inspired food. I have two pairs of tickets to giveaway once again. Read through to the end find out how to win or better yet, head over to the Stove Monkey's websitehttp://stovemonkeys.com/ and order your tickets today!

The menu will include the following:

FOOD created by The Stove Monkey's

Liquid Nitrogen Poached Ice Cream – Ice Cream that is instantly flash-frozen in Liquid Nitrogen – Think Dip and Dots, who doesn't love dip and dots???

Coconut Bubbles – Bubbles like you blew as a kid that taste like coconut and have a sweet spicy finish (jalapeno) and of course, after tasting them the bubbles disappear in your mouth

Liquid Baked Potato – a  frozen liquid that tastes like Baked Potatoes infused w/ white Truffle Oil and Rosemary, coated in flour and tempura fried and served w/ Scallion Aioli

Inside Out Deviled Egg – A reversed Deviled Egg


Drinks created by The Alchemist, Mike Gulley

Banana’s Foster’s – A very fun drink that tastes like a bananas foster. It starts with a Bruleed Glass while you watch, then it's filled with Liquid Nitrogen Poached Ice Cream, and finished w/ reserved liquid nitrogen ice cream that vaporizes on top of the drink and can be inhaled

Maple Old Bacon Fashion – Tastes like a breakfast – Bacon infused Bourbon, Maple Egg White Foam, Orange Brulee

Mojito of Future – Jello shot version of mojito that has green mint caviars on top and finished with Coconut Bubbles.

Tickets are a steal at $7 pre-sale or $10 at the door. The ticket includes the cover charge and all the food you can eat. Drinks are cheap at $3 a piece! Head over to the Stove Monkey's website and order your tickets today!

GIVEAWAY!!!

The Stove Monkey's have once again given me two pairs of to giveaway to Yumm. To enter, they want to know what the strangest thing you've ever eaten is and why. Here's Matt from Stove Monkey's story:

Once upon a time (lol) I ate a raw fish eye. We were in the kitchen monkeying around and decided to eat the eyeball after butchering it. We drizzled Olive Oil, salt, lemon juice, and sriracha to enhance flavor. After chewing the weird texture we all decided it was a bad idea and tasted gross. If someone bet me 5 dollars to do it again I would not. Gross.

Leave a comment below telling us about the strangest thing you've eaten and you could win 2 tickets to Yumm this Monday at Mercury Lounge. You can have a bonus entry for posting a link to the contest on Twitter and another for posting to Facebook, just be sure to leave another comment with a link to your tweet/facebook message. Good luck and I hope to see you there!

Michael Gulley's Bio

The Alchemist 

In a day and age where the common perception of a bartender is simply one who is doing a second job or side gig to make extra money to get through school, twenty five year old Mixologist Michael Gulley is going the extra length to set himself apart as a true professional with a passion for crafting cocktails and entertaining in conversation. With thirteen years experience in the restaurant industry, Mike has moved up the ranks from a bus boy at a family diner in Brook Park, Ohio to managing the front of house operations for a restaurant in the Upper West Side of Manhattan. Recently returning back to Cleveland from NYC, Mike has brought with him a determination to revamp the cocktail culture here in the Greater Cleveland area.   He is currently the Beverage Director at The Fairmount in Cleveland Heights and played a major role in changing the focus of the Fairmount from wine and martinis to classic cocktails that have modern spins with food infusions.  You can also find Mike whipping up crazy culinary cocktails around town with the guys from Stove Monkeys as the team’s Molecular Mixologist.

Providence Church BBQ Rib Burn Off

I'm sorry, I know it's been quite a while since I've posted anything. The real world has been keeping me very busy lately and I haven't been able to spend much time in the kitchen. All the time I have spent in the kitchen has been devoted to one thing, my first cooking contest! I go to Providence Church in Avon and a couple months ago they announced they were going to host a rib burn off to raise money to support the student ministry summer mission trips.  

Sunday, June 6, 12-4pm

Providence Church

35295 Detroit Road

Avon, OH  44011

 A minimum donation of $15 is requested

I've been looking for ways to become more active at Providence and felt God was calling me to this opportunity as soon as I heard about it. So I talked to the guy organizing the competition and the next thing you know I was signed up, to cook 20 racks of St. Louis Style ribs! Did I mention that before signing up I had only cooked one 1/2 rack of ribs in my entire life? Heck, I'd probably even eaten less than 10 racks in my life prior to signing up! What can I say, pulled pork is more my style but I like a good challenge.

So for the past month or so I've been making a lot of ribs. Like with all my cooking, I've tried my best to make everything from scratch and treat the food with the respect it deserves. In my opinion, the only way to properly make ribs is low and slow, on a smoker (a Weber Kettle in my case) with a big kiss of smoke from apple wood. Ribs don't belong in the oven and they should never be boiled. I wanna see the smoke ring!

No, those aren't rare, the pink is caused by the smoking process

I've created numerous different handmade rubs that started with me grinding down dried chilies and mixing them with a variety of herbs and spices; I've applied the rub directly to the ribs as well as with a couple of different handmade mustard slathers; and who could forget the sauce? While I am still in the process of finding the right BBQ sauce, I think I came pretty close tonight. Of course it's my sauce has also been completely made from scratch, even down to the ketchup and worcestershire sauce that went into the various sauces I've made.

I haven't even mentioned the biggest challenge - cooking 20 racks of ribs and having them all ready at once! I can squeeze 5 racks on my Weber at one time using a rib rack and they take close to 5 hours to cook. That means 20 hours of cooking time! Fortunately a friend has the same Weber as me and he's going to let me borrow it, so that will cut the time in half. Guess what I'll be doing all day Saturday? Let me give you a clue, it's going to smell really good in Avon Lake.

Honestly, I am still not very confident in my ability to pull this off, much less compete for the title against the other competitors. But at the end of the day, we will raise a lot of money for a really good cause, so I am happy that I decided to participate. If you are a fan of ribs, I hope you'll consider coming out this Sunday to support a great cause.

So tell me, how do you like your ribs?

• Falling off the bone or a little bite to it? 
• Covered in sauce or let the meat and dry rub shine through? 
• Smokey or baked in an oven?
• Spicy, sweet, a little of both?

I'd love to hear your thoughts and hope to see you on Sunday!

Breaking Bread with Michael Ruhlman's Ratio iPhone App

As a follow up to the piece I wrote on Michael Ruhlman's Buttermilk Dinner Rolls, I wanted to write about my second attempt at bread making. I made a garlic rosemary boule, once again inspired by Ruhlman, but this time I used Ruhlman's Ratio application for the iPhone. This app is a compliment to Michael Ruhlman's book Ratio, which if you aren't familiar with is a must have for any serious cook. It provides simple ratios for 28 key recipes for things like breads, pastas, cakes & cookies, sausages, brines, soups, sauces, custards, and more.

Michael Ruhlman's Ratio Application for the iPhone

Ruhlman's Ratio app made it very easy to make the bread. Not only does the app provide you with the ratios for many common recipes but it allows you to easily adjust the amount of a given ingredient and then it automatically calculates and converts the other ingredients in the ratio. The Ratio app includes instructions on how to make the dish and also offers ideas to modify the dish (like adding rosemary & garlic to to the bread ratio like I did below).

I followed Ruhlman's bread ratio (5 parts flour to 3 parts water) and used 567 grams of flour, 340 grams of water, 11 grams of salt, and 3 grams of yeast. Yes, those measurements are in grams, Ruhlman suggests using a digital kitchen scale for everything you cook, especially when baking.

I wanted to make a flavored loaf so I also threw in some chopped rosemary and roasted garlic cloves . I combined all the ingredients in my Kitchen Aid and mixed them until a dough formed that could be stretched to translucency.

I left the dough in the mixer, covered it, and let it rise for a couple hours until it more than doubled in size. After the dough rose, I kneaded it by hand for a few minutes, formed it into the shape I wanted and put it into a dutch oven (another tip from Ruhlman). I baked it covered for 30 minutes and then removed the lid and cooked it until it looked like this:

Garlic Rosemary Boule

The bread was pretty good but I am not sure how much I liked the crust from the dutch oven. The top crust was nice but I didn't really like the bottom of the bread. I'd be interested in trying some other pans to see the difference.

Michael Ruhlman's Ratio application is definitely one of the best apps I have for my iPhone. Have you tried it? I'd love to hear some of your success stories!