The Coalition of the Swilling

July 02, 2009

Father's Day Grub

In every man there is some flaw, some tragic quality that leads them from the path of Grace to that of peril, ruin and perdition. For some, this Siren takes the form of narcotics; for others it's money; whilst others invariably yield to the allure of a woman.

Strong and heady temptations all. Yet none, in my mind, is so deceptive, so cunning, so singularly focused in its irresistible draw that pulls me in to its inescapable maelstrom as...Costco's Meat Department. My God. Do you folks realize that they are now selling Prime meats? Not "Select." Not only their usual "Choice" grade (which is damned good) but Prime grade, the highest grade of meat, at ridiculous prices. Just look at this

Boneless Prime Ribeye for $9.99 per pound. Most places charge a minimum of $20-25 (and a restaurant will charge you at least $35 for each steak) for these babies...and just look at them

That soft still voice you hear is the exquisite marbling crying out to be generously coated (on both sides) with Montreal Seasoning and left to sit at room temperature for 45 minutes or so whilst your Bride makes the Creamed Spinach of the Gods and some pan-roasted Rosemary Red Po-taters as the grill heats up. I've become a convert to the "reverse sear" method of grilling, where you cook the steaks indirectly on lower heat then sear them on high heat at the end of the cooking.

Now what to imbibe during this...

yummmmmmmmmm. As you know I really don't like spending more than $10 on wine if I can avoid it, so when I do I want to make damn sure that it's worth it. For $19 this Mondavi Cab is simply fantastic; full of luscious smooth fruit and velvety chocolate yumminess.

Especially when joined with the assembled Father's Day Feast

And the second bottle was even better.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 07:46 AM | Comments (10)

"Roadside" Game Hens

As I've mentioned before we're big fans of the Roadside Chicken recipe posted at the Virtual Weber Bulletin Board. A few weeks ago I decided to see how it would work on Cornish Game Hens. So I prepared the marinade and, er, marinated the wee buzzards

for a few hours, flipping occasionally, and grilled them over indirect heat until the usual sign of avian doneness (clear juices and loose bones, etc) and served them with some grilled asparagus (which had itself been marinated in lime juice, balsamic vinegar and a little olive oil) and some of that faithful old standby: Uncle Ben's Wild Rice mix

There's something just primally satisfying about having an entire carcass on your plate.

And damned tasty, too.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 06:53 AM

To Counter Those Ugly And Unsubstantiated Rumors...

...spread most likely by fauxpseudovinoenvyists that "all" I'm imbibing of late comes from a box may I offer the following partial testament from June

Oops, that last one is the mussels (recipe here)I made last Friday as an excuse to consume the Sancerre...

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 06:24 AM | Comments (7)

June 23, 2009

Swilling Trend-Mongers

We are so far ahead of the curve we scare ourselves.

And small children.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 03:22 PM | Comments (9)

June 16, 2009

They All Laughed At Christopher Columbus

When he said the world was round
They all laughed when Edison recorded sound
They all laughed at Wilbur and his brother
When they said that man could fly

They told Marconi
Wireless was a phony
It's the same old cry
They laughed at me serving you
Said I was a cheap damn Scot buffoon
But oh, you came through
Now they'll have to change their tune

They all said you never could taste yummy
They laughed at me and how!
But ho, ho, ho!
Who's got the last laugh now?

(link via my lovely Bride)

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 02:22 PM | Comments (14)

June 05, 2009

You Know I Love You Guys Dearly

But I am somewhat disappointed that no one (and I'm looking at you, Ken) has gotten the pun yet in my Music Theory post from a few months ago:

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 09:36 AM | Comments (9)

Sunday Dinner

I've been quite merrily working my way through the NY Strips from last month, very very tough work, let me tell you...the sacrifices I make for you guys.

Anyhow, as the weather was quite lurvly on Sunday I decided to use the bottom of my WSM as my own little Smokey Joe kettle to grill the steaks over charcoal. After many months of me begging my local Imbibery has finally stocked one of my all-time fav wines

The Mondavi Carneros Pinot Noir is, for about $18, a simply lovely wine. It has very nice fruit and structure and as close to a burgundian flavor as I've found in an American pinot under $30. Buy it if you see it.

I wanted to see how much I could cram on the grill; I think 3 NY Strips and 4 ears of corn fit nicely

The nice thing about this ad-hoc kettle is that the grill itself was easy to spin so I could control the cook pretty easily by having the coals piled against one side of the bowl. This gave me both direct and indirect cooking.

Served along with a batch of oven-roasted rosemary/thyme/sea salt spuds (and another bottle of wine, natch) it was a very satisfactory way to end the weekend.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 09:30 AM | Comments (3)

June 02, 2009

Saturday Dinner

I was in the mood for shrimp and scallops...but somehow this seems to be a bit beyond the word "shrimp"

Geeze Luise those things were ginormous. So I took four of them and plopped them in a big honking ziplock along with about a pound of scallops, fresh lime juice (four limes' worth), a splash of olive oil, some red pepper flakes and about a tablespoon of curry powder. I let them marinate for about 45 minutes (with the fresh lime juice that's about the max; any longer and the seafood will start to ceviche-fy), flipping and squishing constantly to get all the tasties spread about then popped those babies on the grill for just a couple of minutes per side

served with some twice-baked spuds I made earlier in the day (and some green thing that is required by the Government) it made for a tasty meal.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 09:44 PM | Comments (5)

May 13, 2009

Since Woman Was Made From Adam's Rib

(Or so they tell me) it seemed only fitting that I make some fine swine baby backs for my Bride for Mother's Day...9 pounds worth

these porcine suckers were large enough

that I figured it was best if I cut them in half

and then coat them with the dry rub

then on to the smoker

for 3-4 hours of hickory-steeped pollution infusion!

Finger-lickin' good.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 07:25 AM | Comments (8)

May 10, 2009

I Really Needed This On Friday

Indeed I did.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 11:02 AM | Comments (7)

May 07, 2009

Note to Self:

Fat-free cream cheese sucks.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 09:01 AM | Comments (24)

May 05, 2009

I Really Really Really Should Stop

Going to Costco when I'm hungry. But, since I'm hungry all the time, that's probably a bit much to ask. My latest adventure in shopping excess happened on Thursday, when I popped into Costco just to buy some whole chickens, at only .89/lb, for grilling and beer canning. Or at least that's what I thought I was going to buy. Ah, but the Gods of Gluttony had other plans for my arteries...

Look at that beauty. Nearly 15 lbs of untrimmed New York Strip glory!

How could a feller say no? Hell, why would a feller say no?

Based on my previous success trimming out a whole tenderloin I felt up to the task...

My first problem was that the slab-o-beef was bigger than my cutting board, so let's hack this baby into more manageable halves

As you can see there's a goodly-sized fat cap that needs to be trimmed off, so fir...what are you peeking at, dog?

New York Strip is people food. People food. P-E-O-

P-L oh all right but I want you to count to 10 first in Labradorian before you dive in

Excellent. What happened to your tail?

Now that that's out of the way I could trim the fat and slice off a bunch of steaks, each one about 1 1/2 to 1 3/4 inches thick...oh yeah

Now that's a tower of power! I got 12 steaks, each one weighing roughly a pound trimmed, which is enough for at least four meals for us. The price worked out to about $7 per steak, which is pretty good. Using the ever-handy (and cheap) Ziplock Vacuum sealer I packed 9 steaks away for the freezer

and kept 3 out for dinner, coated them liberally with Montreal seasoning

and opened up a bottle of McManis Cab to marinate myself with whilst the grill warmed up

Not the greatest wine, really. A little thin and acidic so this won't be one I'll get again; there are many better wines out there in the sub-$10 range that I dwell in...such as that bottle of zinfandel you see lurking in some of the early pictures

Dancing Bull Zinfandel. Good fruit, full bodied...and 14.5% alcohol! W00t!! All for $9. Yippee.

Any-hoo, back to the grill

sizzle sizzle sizzle

and if you'll excuse us now...

yum.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 08:01 AM | Comments (18)

April 19, 2009

My Sister-Out-Law Has Arrived For A Week's Visit

I'm going to need every drop.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 05:52 PM | Comments (12)

April 14, 2009

Worthy is The Lamb That Was Slain

And marinated for my meal.

Ah, Easter! Sure, there's the whole "Resurrection of our Lord" stuff; don't get me wrong, that's big! But really...it's all about bonnets! And flowers! And springtime allergies! And food!

Isn't it?

Anywhooo, for Easter this year I decided I was going to make some lamb with an indian twist.

Now, as everyone knows, the most important part of cooking lamb is garlic

six cloves in this instance, crushed into 2 cups of plain lowfat yogurt

along with the juice of 1 lime and 4 generous tablespoons of garam masala

lovely

Now mix that puppy up

and let the flavors coagulate for a little while.

Meanwhile, get out your conveniently packaged boneless leg of lamb (from our Dear Friends in Australia)

cut off the netting and open that beauty up

now you'll want to butterfly her out just a little bit to aid in the cooking. After you do that spread some of the marinade on the "interior" surface

and then roll that puppy back up and schplop her into a large ziplock along with the remainder of the marinade

and put the bag in the fridge to gestate for 24 hours or so, turning occasionally. The next day, about an hour before you put her on the grill, take her out and let her come somewhat up to room temperature

No, it ain't pretty. But sweet baby fluffmeister does it smell yummy. Then you pop that bad gal on the grill. I had the grill set to two levels of heat: a really hot side for the initial searing and a lower-flamed side for more sustained cooking. I wanted to bring the temp up to about 160º, which is medium for lamb. You need to watch it fairly constantly, which was easy to do between shots at the Masters, as the fatty lamb plus the yogurt can make for some Olympic-sized flare-ups if you're not careful.

Anyhow, what to consume while Fluffy is sizzling? Hmmm, well, Easter is a rather special day. And it would be a pity to let a nice bottle of bubbly go bad from just sitting there in the closet (it would be an even worse crime to save the bottle for my sister-out-law's visit next week, but that's a whole other story). Yes, yes; it's best we drink it today!

1998 Dom. My my. Exceedingly tasty. Mind you, I got it as a gift many many years ago, as I'm too darned cheap to drop a couple of hundred bucks on a bottle of champagne (which I don't really care for) but I'm perfectly willing to let someone else spend the money; I'm big that way. This bottle had aged exquisitely: the sometimes sharp acidity had mellowed into a toasty, softly yeasty yumminess and the bubbles were micro-sized in ticklish flavor. Yum yum.

By this point the Fluffster had come up to the desired temperature (I have not yet been able to convince my girls that rare lamb is a good thing)

and the flavor was exceptionally divine when paired with par-boiled yams that had been flavored with brown sugar and maple syrup by my Bride and a mixed green salad with a raspberry vinaigrette whose sharp acidity cut the sweetness of the yams and the latent heaviness of the lamb quite nicely.

All in all a quite yummy meal!

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 06:05 AM | Comments (8)

April 13, 2009

So Much Pig

So little time

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 08:57 PM

March 31, 2009

The Importance Of Knowing Ernest

Some may recall a few weeks ago where I vowed to subject myself to a Plonk-a-thon for you, Dear Readers, to see if there were some hidden gems to be found in the wilds of the box wine world. I know quite well the general box wines, those overly sweet, heavily perfumey tasting beasts marked with generic names like "white grenasty" or "killable red;" wines that quite frankly, while perfectly acceptable when heavily chilled and served over ice, make one feel that somehow they should be wrapped in a brown paper bag when consumed in a back alley somewhere and washed down with a chaser of Prestone. No, I wanted to see how bulk winemakers were handling some of the high-faluting grape varietals, so after some diligent research I found the following three examples of merlot:

Franzia

Almaden

and Peter Vella

I found out in the course of this arduous research that both Franzia and Almaden are owned by some mega vino behemoth named the Wine Group or "TWG", which also owns Corbett Canyon, Glen Ellen and many others, while Vella, whose family has long ties with Ernest and Julio Gallo, is part of the even larger E&J Gallo wine empire.

But on to the important stuff...

Each box holds 5 liters of wine, the equivalent of 6 2/3 bottles. I paid $14 for each box, so that means each 'normal' sized 750ml bottle cost $2.10.

$2.10

That, my friends, is change I can believe in.

Interestingly, each wine had a slightly different tap arrangement

The Franzia and the Almaden both used a 'screw' type tap, with the Franzia's being on top whilst the Almaden's was rotated 90º forward to the front. The Vella's was a spring-loaded push button dealio. They all worked fine for the pouring, but Almaden lost points when it slowly leaked precious wine out when I didn't take care to make sure it was totally closed...an easy thing to do when one is making one's way solo through 15 liters.

The wines all had a similar pleasant ruby color

and there were no offending aromas from the glasses; in fact, they smelled quite decent, so I lined up Murderer's Row

and settled in for a long

and arduous research period

I found that many times I had to re-visit samples many times

to ensure that my data was accurate. Some might call it an obsession, but I feel that you deserve my very best effort.

Pretty early on I have to say I had decided on third place. Least favorite was the Franzia. While it had a smooth mouth feel the wine exhibited some mildly unpleasant grapefruit notes and was noticeably more acidic than the others.

To me the Almaden and Vella wines were clearly superior to the Franzia, but in different ways. The Almaden had the most distinct merlot varietal flavor, with more pronounced cherry fruit and tannins giving it a more complex 'edginess' then you might expect; certainly this would be more at home in a bottle costing, say $8 than $2, while the Vella had a very smooth fullness to it. The fruit and tannins were there but in a more elegant, subdued fashion.

Ultimately I had to give top honors to the Vella. His years working with Ernest and Julio have paid off handsomely for us. It just...satisfied me more. I could easily just have the box on the counter and relax every evening with a glass or three whilst talking with my Bride and enjoying a meal; in fact, I did relax for many evenings with three boxes on the counter. A pleasant wine greatly enhances life, friends.

The really nice thing about these boxes is that the wine stays fresh, as no air gets in to spoil them. In these nervous times these wines are a great value. I really won't buy the Franzia again, but I wouldn't hesitate to buy either the Vella first or the Almaden second again.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 09:35 PM | Comments (16)

March 14, 2009

I'm Anti-Depressed!

In the spirit of Sis' post below, last night for dinner I decided to make a "fattie" to en-cheer my beloved family

A "fattie," Dear Friends, is a 1lb log of breakfast sausage that is smoked at 250º or so until its internal temperature reaches about 170º

I made a basic fattie: just took the sausage and coated it with my favorite BBQ dry rub.

The more advanced students of Fattieology roll the sausage out and put cheese, onions, peppers, etc, inside and roll that bad boy back up and carefully seal the seams to keep all that tasty goodness inside before bbqing it.

Dang-nabbit it was tasty.

and salty.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 10:38 AM | Comments (8)

February 28, 2009

Music Theory

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 07:07 PM | Comments (1)

February 08, 2009

Saturday Ribeyes

Hmmm, what's a fellow to do with 4 1/2 pounds of ribeyes and only three humans?

I've got some beans simmering for a few hours and

go away!

I'll serve the beans over rice and maybe we'll

GO AWAY! NO!

have some collards greens and farofa and

oh ALRIGHT dang it mutt you can have half of one

Now will you let me eat in peace please?

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 07:45 AM | Comments (7)

January 19, 2009

I'm Sure You Can Hear the Ancient High Kings

...screaming.

...Irish demand for Guinness and other dark-brown stout beers also has waned in recent years as youthful drinkers prefer foreign lagers and vodka-based drinks.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 04:48 PM | Comments (8)

January 17, 2009

A Philosophical Question

Why do capers only come in bottles that seemingly only a coke spoon (an implement I've never owned) fit in? How the does one extract "1 tbsp, drained" from an orifice that no spoon I own can enter?

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 07:58 AM | Comments (13)

January 03, 2009

Ah, Bingley?!?!?!?

I could use a little guidance here, Mr. Java-know-it-all. They be gettin' mighty RED mighty FAST...

Posted by tree hugging sister at 05:41 PM | Comments (12)

Ah, Bingley?!?!?!?

I could use a little guidance here, Mr. Java-know-it-all. They be gettin' mighty RED mighty FAST...

Posted by tree hugging sister at 05:41 PM | Comments (12)

December 26, 2008

Christmas Turkey

(and I'm not talking about me)

For Christmas dinner this year I decided to smoke a turkey using the easy and tasty recipe by Keri C Here. This is a high-temperature smoke, so it really takes the same amount of time as a regular buzzard cook in the oven. But whoa Nelly the flavor!

You need an unbrined, non-enhanced turkey. I got a 14 pounder from Hinck's. A "free-range" farm in New Jersey...who'd a thunk it? Anyhow, mostly following the recipe on Tuesday night I mixed 1 gallon of apple juice with 3/4 cup kosher salt, 1/2 cup honey, 1/2 cup organic white sugar and 1/2 cup brown sugar. I borrowed a 20 qt non-reactive pot to brine the beast in and plopped her in.

and then I wrestled the pot into the back fridge for a few days of enjuicyfying. And I do mean wrestled; this puppy was heavy. From Tuesday night until Thursday morning it sat in the fridge, brining away.

Christmas morning, after the presents were opened, I lugged the pot out of the fridge, took the turkey out, rinsed her off and patted her dry with paper towels and then put her on a platter back into the fridge to dry a little bit for a few hours until I was ready to cook her.

I was planning on about a 3 hour cook, so at the D-4 hour mark I started the charcoal going. While that was warming up I took her out of the fridge and quartered a large onion and placed in the cavity, tied the drumsticks together and lightly sprinkled some Montreal steak seasoning on the skin just because I felt like it, and inserted the old temperature probe

Once the coals got reasonably warm I put on four chunks of cherry for the smoke

and assembled the smoker, watching the temperature climb quickly to the desired 350º

(or at least close enough for my purposes) whereupon on the buzzard went

to be completely ignored for the next 2/12 hours. The wonderful thing about the temperature probes is that you never ever have to lift up the lid to check the internal temp; the lead hangs out the side of the smoker/over/grill/whatever and you just plug in the meter and you get your temperature. I started checking the temp at the 2 hour mark, because I was between bottles of wine, and it was climbing nicely.

I used the smoking time creatively. I drank wine, and I watched my Bride set a lovely table

Right around 3 hours the breast temperature hit my target of 165º so I brought her in

and covered her with foil to rest for 15 minutes or so while the remainder of the sides were finalized, then sliced and served. daughter was kind enough to pause for a half second before eating to show you

Turkey with a delicious smoke ring and flavor, mashed spuds and mashed yams, tasty green beans. Yum yum yum.

Oh, and to wash it all down

A bottle of Chateau Latour 1989. I bought that bottle, gosh, at least 15 years ago. I couldn't afford it then, and I sure as heck can't afford to replace it now, but it was bought to be drunk at a special time with family and friends, and I figured this Christmas surely fit that description. And I was frankly getting a little nervous that after nearly 20 years of far from ideal storage and several moves that it might be well past its prime...but it was wonderful. Not quite as full bodied as Latour normally is, and perhaps not quite what you would expect from one of the top rated wines of one of the top rated vintages of the past century, she nonetheless had a sweetness and smooth classic structure that was simply marvelous. Sure, I could have waited for the perfect meal or the perfect occasion...and she might have turned to flat brown water by then.

Fine things are only made fine by sharing them with those you care for.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 08:02 PM | Comments (11)

December 23, 2008

Porterhouse Heaven

Last week I just had an urge for beef. And not just any beef, but Porterhouse.

3 3/4 lbs of tasty cow joy

Two deliciously huge 2 inch thick pieces of cow flesh

Covered in garlic salt and pepper, grilled 'til yummy, and served with a huge pot of mashed spuds

Oh, and wine, natch

a very reasonable chianti for only $10.

Life is good.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 09:32 PM | Comments (3)

December 21, 2008

Quote of the Day

...I want a single malt with a name I can’t pronounce and a creamy, austere label that tells a complicated story about ancient sherry casks and peat and heather and weird little islands full of taciturn Presbyterians.

Indeed, heartfelt words and a righteous tenet worth holding fast.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 01:21 PM | Comments (9)

November 27, 2008

Let The Gluttony Commence!

Ummmmm, what better way to start the day than a nice platter of Vienna Sausage nachos?

although, to be honest, they weren't nearly as good as the pulled pork nachos I made two weeks ago...

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 01:40 PM

My New Favorite Website

Friends, say hello to Bacon Today.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 12:09 PM | Comments (4)

November 03, 2008

What To Cook For Tommorow Night?

And, more importantly, what to drink.

I know I'll drink a lot of it, regardless.

Since the next four years will have a lot of pork in Washington...hmmm.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 03:13 PM | Comments (10)

October 19, 2008

So, It's Sunday Afternoon

Not finding any slow field rats...


...Ozzie and Beau are left to wonder what's for da dinner? Well, whaddo I got?


Plenty, 'twould seem.

Let's talk stuffing. 4 pieces of deevine Nueske's bacon, diced up and crisping. But I can't decide what smells better ~ the bacon or the toasted LOCAL pecans...



Ahhhhh. Yums. Get the bacon pieces crispy and slotted spoon them into a large bowl.

LEAVE THE BACON FAT ALONE, INFIDEL!!! Or I KILL you!

Add a pat of butter and then a small, diced onion and about 3 garlic cloves. Soften 'em up.



Add a diced apple and those pecans and let the apple soften as well. At this point I added some chopped fresh parsley, dried celery flakes, thyme and rubbed sage. The gentle heat really gets the aromatics singing.



Okay, major dad! (The man will not quit.)



Add to the bacon waiting patiently in the large bowl...



...and then mix in about 2 cups of the crumbled homemade cornbread, Prudhomme's Blackened Redfish to taste and some chicken stock to get it moistened. (But not to sticky glop stage.) Now, for the slasher movie...



"Come to me my pretty."



Slide a SHARP knife down the length of the rib bones...



...and then ~ without completely separating the loin from the bones ~ begin slicing the length until you've created and "unrolled" loin.



(I also moderately "frenched" the rib ends.) Salt and pepper, schmear with stuffing, and roll 'er on up.





Truss that puppy front...



...and back...

...then get him acquainted with a roasting pan. (AFTER you've replaced the stuffing that escaped from his sides and liberally sprinkled him with thyme, sage, garlic salt and cracked pepper.)



He'll love you for it. 350º until 145º internal temp. This old boy was a tad over 4 lbs and about 1 1/2 hrs.

And WHAT in the wild, wild world of sports TOOK so long?!?!?



Oh, that's MUCH better now! Thing Q, my darling! I can concentrate again. Pork ~ When he's done, put him on the cutting board, tent him and let him rest 15 or so minutes. Then drain off most of the fat in the roasting pan, add a pat of butter and about 2-3 T flour, and WORK those brown yummies!



The small pan behind has a combination of vermouth and chicken stock (schmaybe 3C all together) that's been gently reducing to about 1 1/2C this whole time. Once your flour's cooked into the pan and the cooked-on nummies are coming off the bottom, slowly add the liquid and stir. It should start to thicken up immediately and you'll be able to loosen it up to the gravy of your choice with the addition of more dribbles of chicken stock. I strained it, but there's not a dang thing there that was inedible, should you choose to go rustic. I also just added cracked pepper, since there's lots of salt and herbs in the pan from the roast's initial seasoning and stuffing spillage. (Taste well before you add anything.)

Untent that happy puerko gordo and check out just how pretty he is.



Honestly, take a moment to bask in your handiwork and receive the kudos of those in the kitchen.



Add some of major dad's World Famous Creamy Mashed 'Taters, one of his beauteous salads, and then...well...eat.



Melt in your diggetydadgum mouth, I tell ya.

Scotties and lab not included.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 09:18 PM | Comments (5)

October 17, 2008

There Are Few Problems In This World...

...that the combination of a box of Triscuits, a wedge of gorgonzola and a bottle of chianti can't solve.

That is all.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 05:42 PM

October 15, 2008

Beef Stew With Port. Well, Mostly Port With A Beef Chaser.

Man, this past week sucked, didn't it? I found that I was very very tired and really just drained by Friday, so I knew for the weekend I needed to follow my own advice and spend as much time in the kitchen this weekend as I could; that's where I can really relax. As the weather is just lovely and slowly cooling I wanted to cook something warm and filling, and there's one recipe that my parents got out of an old Dodge magazine that they had when we drove around in something like this beast. The recipe was called "Portuguese Soupas." I don't actually think any Portuguese were harmed or consulted in its making, however, as any ones I've mentioned this to have never eaten anything like it.

Anyhow, one of the big benefits of spending several hours in the kitchen is the imbibing opportunities

Baritone Shiraz/Cabernet blend. It has nice fruit and structure, not the deepest of colors in the glass, more like a darkish raspberry, really. In these rather trying economic times what's especially nice about it is that it comes in a 1 liter bottle for only $10. Is it a great wine? No, I wouldn't save it for a special event, but it's fine for every day imbibing.

Did I mention beef? At Costco they have these delicious london broils running, oh, 2 pounds each or so and they come two to a package, so on Friday night I grilled one and for this dish on Saturday I cut up the other

into 1" or so chunks and put it in a large dutch oven, which certainly got someone's attention

Not that I am easily swayed by outright begging, mind you, but look at that face

Oh, I guess some meat might have fallen into your bowl after all

Anyhow, back to the human food. Did I mention this recipe uses Port?

Yum. Anyhow, take two of the large 28 oz cans of crushed tomaters and dump them into the pot atop the cubed meat. Then take your tasty bottle of ruby port and fill one of the cans, oh, about a third of the way up

and swish it about to remove any leftover 'maters then pour that into the other can and repeat, then dump that into the pot with the other stuff. And pour more port in for good measure; I usually end up using most of the bottle.

Now, Friends, I know that you, like myself, are concerned about serving your guests and family only the finest in beverages and vittles, so it is important at this point to make sure the port is up to your usual high standards (i.e. the bottle has been paid for)

Yes, that will work nicely.

Place the pot on the stove over medium-ish heat and add what you consider to be a reasonable amount of garlic

and a teaspoon or so of ground coriander

a large chopped onion, a teaspoon of celery seed, some freshly ground salt and pepper

At this point you should get the pot up to a rolling simmer then back it off to a sloooow simmer for about 3 hours, covered, stirring occasionally. The idea is to let things meld and reduce slightly.

and oh damn

I'll attend to that little emergency in a moment; first take a few large spuds (again, this is at the roughly 3 hour point)

and please note that I am not a Potatist: I believe all tuber races have the right to freely coexist in my belly. It's my Big Tent.

So cube up those babies and plop them into the pot for about thirty minutes of cooking

Don't they look thirsty?

Of course they do.

Don't I look thirsty?

Why won't this camera focus?

Now what goes nicely with this stew is some home-made garlic bread. So in a little saute pan gently melt half a stick of unsalted butter with a couple of tablespoons of olive oil

add a decent amount of garlic powder, some oregano, fresh ground pepper and salt and gently simmer

Come here my pretties

ah, tasty chopped garlic

add that to the saute pan and continue the kinder, gentler sauteing

I'd even turn the heat down more, as if it's a touch too high or you get distracted the garlic is easy to over cook and it becomes like hard little bitter bits of chewing gum.

While that heats up slice your baguette into thick pieces

Now, back to the stew for a moment. Take a package of frozen spinach (As Julie Child once said, this is "Nutrition rearing its ugly head")

and carefully plop it into the pot

and I do mean 'carefully,' for as some folks would say the stew has been cooking for several hours and it is quite nu-que-ler; you do not want to splatter thyself. A side effect of this is that the frozen spinach rapidly becomes unfrozen and perfectly done in the 10 minutes or so that are left.

Now, an unfortunate side effect of being in the kitchen for 3 hours is that the one liter bottle of wine is now a zero liter bottle.

An outrageous restriction of my civil liberties which will not stand.

But first I've got to carefully spoon the garlicy goodness onto the waiting slices

springle with a light layer of parmesan cheese and put in the oven at, oh, 375 or so. I like to bake the garlic bread, not broil it, so 375 for 8-10 minutes seems to work for my taste, but YMMV.

After a few minutes in the pot-o-doom the spinach is mostly de-frozen so give it a stir

and attend the that most pressing matter: your glass

I love this wine. I feel so dirty saying that, but it's true. A very smooth, easy-drinking vin de table. And how does $8 for a 1.5 liter bottle strike you? This is an insane bargain. Buy this wine. Buy a lot of it. Have a glass every night with your beloved. Enjoy life, dear friends. Vive la Freedom Fries!

So the 10 minutes are up, my glass is newly full, the garlic bread has nicely browned

the stew is ready

serve and enjoy

(sorry about the bite out of that piece there...Quality Control and all, you understand)

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 07:35 AM | Comments (15)

September 17, 2008

The Grapes Of Wrath

So I know y'all have been anxiously awaiting word on how Bingley Vineyards were doing. When we got back from Alaska things were looking pretty good

The grapes were growing nicely and starting to deep purple-ize. I'm not sure why about 1/4 of them seemed to abort, though. Any idea, Suzette?

Anyhow, early in September I was hoping to gather enough grapes to make some cabernet franc preserves once they ripened sufficiently, but alas the remnants of various tropical storms blew through and I sort of forgot about my grapes...much to the Yellow Jackets' delight

You see that little bugger in the center who's actually inside the grape? Bastard! The grapes were so sweet and tasty that the bees left me...well, nothing

Ah well. Next year I guess I need to invest in some bee traps and some type of netting.

And if anyone knows how to properly prune vines I will gladly take some advice; I want these babies to produce next year.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 06:53 AM | Comments (3)

August 10, 2008

With Apologies To Lou Gehrig

Look what my Bride and Daughter bought me

I am the luckiest man on the face of the earth.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 08:13 AM | Comments (12)

August 05, 2008

Roadside Chicken

One of the things I love about my Weber Bullet is that it's got me hooked on a phenomenal cooking resource: The Virtual Weber Bulletin Board. The folks there are amazing cooks, and while most of the cooking centers around smoking foods and BBQ there is also a ton of great, hands on information about grilling, side dishes, appetizers, etc. One of the most popular recipes is Bryan S.'s Roadside Chicken, which frankly to me makes the best grilled chicken I've ever had (and I believe my Bride and Daughter agree). I have modified the recipe very slightly, and I think I like it better after it marinates for up to 24 hours, which is a bit longer than Bryan suggests (or may be longer than he can wait!).

First off, the marinade:
1 cup white vinegar
1/4 cup worcestershire sauce
1 TBS Sea or Kosher salt
1 TBS white sugar
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp onion powder
1 tsp white pepper
3/4 TBS celery seed

Combine all the ingredients in a pourable container and mix well and set to the side.

For this batch I bought a 7lb whole chicken. I always use whole chickens these days and cut them up my self; it's so much cheaper and it is not at all hard to do. You just get a good pair of poultry shears and cut off the drumsticks, thighs and wings and then cut off the Pamelas, leaving them on the ribs but cutting through the center breastbone so they are separate. Just keep your fingers clear because the shears, bless their heart, do not discriminate between human bones and chicken ones.

Put the cut up buzzard into a thick 1 gallon ziplock freezer bag, stir the marinade and dump it in.

And pop that momma into the fridge for as many hours as you can spare, turning occasionally to make sure everything is evenly enjuicified.

Now, on Saturday I was a little tired so I didn't want to make anything too complex, so I decided to just grill some corn and make plain buttered rice to go with the chicken.

I got some reasonable ears of corn that the shucking gremlins hadn't attacked at the store (and why oh why do people feel the urge to waste twenty ears of corn at the store, half-shucking them all to find the 'perfect' ones? Damn, that annoys the bejeebus out of me)

and I peeled back the husk carefully and removed the silk

then folded the husk back up, sprinkled on a little water and wrapped the ears loosely together in a big piece of foil

I prefer to sort of grill/steam them in the husk like this, as I like the sweet caramelized flavor it imparts, and, as they go on the grill with the chicken it cuts down on dishes and heat in the kitchen, but YMMV.

Anyhow, on to the grill it all goes

As you can see the Pamelas are enormous, so I have them in a different area over somewhat higher heat. You just have to keep watching everything and turn fairly often. The recipe calls for basting every few minutes, but frankly I'm too lazy for that.

And, hell, I prefer to, um, attend to my own liquid requirements while things are cooking, anyway.

So, close the lid, check and turn every few minutes and 20-some-odd minutes later voila

The rich, mellow tang from the chicken is balanced by the sweetness from the corn which plays nicely with the slight buttery rice. Yum

Sometimes simpler beats high falutin'.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 07:32 AM | Comments (4)

August 04, 2008

What I'm Drinking Tonight

Saw this at the Bottle King the other day. Rated a 90 by Parker and only $8.99?

I'm not quite sure how it got that high a score, frankly. Don't get me wrong, for the price it is an excellent shiraz, but it is a little out of balance for my taste; the tannins and alcohol are too forward, so there's a combination of slight bite and burn immediately on the palate, followed by good cassis and plum fruit. Like I said, for $8.99 it is quite good, and I've bought several more bottles of it, but in an ideal world I don't make it a 90.

And I'm not sure how they got that picture of Sis for the label.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 08:45 PM | Comments (7)

August 03, 2008

"The Beer That Made Milwaukee Famous"

...foams again.

...Schlitz was the top-selling beer for much of the first half of the 20th century. But recipe changes and a series of snafus made the beer — in many a drinker's opinion — undrinkable, turning what was once the world's most popular brew into little more than a joke.

But after decades of dormancy, the beer is back.

Schlitz' owner, Pabst Brewing Co., is recreating the old formula, using notes and interviews with old brew masters to concoct the pilsner again. The maker of another nostalgic favorite, Pabst Blue Ribbon, it hopes baby boomers will reach for the drink of their youth, otherwise known as "The Beer That Made Milwaukee Famous." They also want to create a following among younger drinkers who want to know what grandma and grandpa drank.

Just in time for the Budweiser boycott!!

Posted by tree hugging sister at 03:57 PM | Comments (6)

August 02, 2008

Sunday Smoked Brisket

Last Sunday, since I hadn't played with the Bullet in way too long, I decided to smoke a brisket and make sandwiches for dinner.

I got a 3 1/2 lb flat cut from Costco and slathered that puppy up with worchestershire

and then some deee-lish rub from Texas BBQ Rub

I let that sit for a bit whilst I fired up the Bullet. I decided to use a mix of cherry and hickory for the smoke

Once she was smoking I put the Bullet together, filled the water pan

added the brisket

and sealed her up

Having few duties for the next few hours while she cooked I looked for a creative and useful way to occupy the time

Unfortunately it started to Pour Like Hell

which started to cause me all sorts of problems keeping the temperaure at 250º in the Bullet; in fact I could barely keep it at 200º, which meant my target internal temp of 190º was going to be very tough to get. I ended up pulling it off after 4 hours or so when the internal temp was around 160º, which is certainly safe to eat but is not high enough to really tenderize the meat. But I figured that since I was slicing it for sandwiches the world wouldn't end. There was a nice smoke ring

So I sliced her thin, put the slices on some hero rolls that had been swathed with some melted garlic butter, poured on some homemade bbq sauce

cracked a few more beers and ate away.

Life is ok.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 04:30 PM | Comments (8)

July 30, 2008

I Thought the Mexicans Were Handling Everything on Their End

...just fine?

Salmonella outbreak tied to irrigation water

CDC says it has found 'smoking gun' that led to 1,300 people falling ill

The salmonella strain linked to a nationwide outbreak has been found in irrigation water and a serrano pepper at a Mexican farm, federal health officials said Wednesday.

Madre de dios, numbnuts! What's the FIRST, inviolate rule for visiting Mexico?

DON'T drink the agua mierda.

Florida's tomato farmers thank you.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 06:24 PM | Comments (5)

July 28, 2008

Kitchen Gadgets: Surplus Cash/More Money Than Sense

/Bingley Edition.

Electric Vacuum Marinator

For $199.95 + shipping.

I shit you not.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 03:53 PM | Comments (3)

July 27, 2008

Saturday Night Grub

Sometimes nothing beats the basics. A nice bottle of wine

and a plated loaded with a NY strip, pan-roasted rosemary potatoes and a nice helping of creamed spinach

yum yum yum.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 08:40 AM | Comments (3)

July 26, 2008

What I'm Drinking Tonight

Well, maybe not tonight

But one of these days, by gum...

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 07:06 PM | Comments (5)

July 25, 2008

After Forcing Sweet major dad to Make Me a Caipirinha

...to see how green worked against the colors of my new absinthe design (BITCHING, in my humble estimation.)...


...I looked up from the camera to see he had thoughtfully placed almost the entire dinner fixin's (taters in the oven) beside the cocktail to keep it company.



Ebola is, unfortunately, unable to mooch join us tonight, so it's strictly an adult affair.

Ah, Friday night.

Shame about that, Ratboy.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 08:06 PM | Comments (10)

July 04, 2008

What I'm Eating For The Fourth Of July

As y'all are well aware my Bride has cruelly abandoned me on this most American of holidays. So what's a fellow to do?
Well, for starters, I will wear a shirt she got for me a few years ago back on the Mississippi

That will set the proper mood, dontcha think?

To help that mood along I made myself a caipirinha

using our buddy Cahaça Dave's cachaça, Fazenda Mãe de Ouro.

Damned tasty stuff.

Now for fun I had bought a bottle of German Zeller Schwarze Katz wine to have

as it was only $7, but the caipirinha was too damn tasty at the moment, so it had to wait.

Anyhow, I decided that to honor Independence Day I needed to make a meal in honor of a specific government employee, so I decided to make Dave J. Burgers.

Yes, the glorious Dave J. Assistant Prosecutor Burger!

First, take nearly 2 lbs. of ground beef

What?

You're not interested in...this, are you?

Well, wait a minute.

La-la-la-la.

Ok, go ahead

Now, take whatever beef you've been able to save from The Beast™ and form into a flat pattie with a large pocket

and fill the pocket with crumbled blue cheese, then fold it over and seal the blue yumminess inside and liberally coat with fresh ground black pepper and sea salt

Dude, did I forget to feed you?

Throw the patties on the toasty grill

Anyhow, next...oh damn!

Well, let's make another, shall we?

First, grab a lime

cut off the skin (the secret to reducing the bitterness)

Cut the lime into eight pieces and muddle with 4 teaspoons of sugar (more or less to taste)

add about, er, oh, this much cachaça

add ice and stir

and enjoy!

Now, back to Dave J Burger Land...

Take your wedge of Gorgonzola

cut two manly slices and plop them atop the happily flipped grilling burgers

While the cheese is meltulating get the minty condoms, er, condiments ready

Oh Damn! Gone already?

Rats. Anyhow, place the pickles on the potato rolls

followed by the cheesily burgers and top it all off with fresh basil leaves

You know, this black cat cellar wine ain't so bad

cold, crisp, with a slight raisiny sweetness; 9% alcohol it's perfect for hot summer nights

and come to Poppa, you Dave J burger, you!

A happy 4th to y'all!

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 10:42 PM | Comments (3)

July 03, 2008

What I'm Drinking Tonight

Oh Woe Is Me!

Well, more precisely, oh woe is my liver. You see, Daughter has been off at camp for two weeks, and today my beloved Bride flew out to get her and visit with her Pop for a week.

This leaves me alone. For a week.

Well, I do have important tasks to do, mind you. The deck needs to be power washed and restained, as indeed does the entire house, and to this end I've spent the weightier part of today. But a feller has to eat, doesn't he?

and drink?

For dinner I'm going to make some Bingley Rabe, as it's my traditional I'm-so-ronery meal.

I've decided to channel my inner Cullen while I cook (and drink) so I've put Black Sabbath's "We Sold Our Soul For Rock And Roll" cd on the stereo very loud. Most excellent.

For beverages I thought I'd work my way through a variety of German wines

as I haven't posted really anything on them.

But then this cute little keg of beer caught my eye

Dortmunder is very tasty and smooth out of this 5 liter keg. What I especially appreciate is the little Germanic order on the side: "Once opened, party keg must be consumed in one day."

Not a problem.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 07:56 PM | Comments (5)

June 06, 2008

What I'm Drinking Tonight

A rather tasty and cheap wine from Chile

The Concha y Toro Casillero del Diablo Carmenere 2006

Carmenere is one of the original Bordeaux grapes which has in fact nearly completely disappeared from Bordeaux thanks to the philoxera problems that started in the 19th century, and it was only relatively recently re-discovered in Chile where it is thriving. A deep deep purple wine, this has soft tannins and loads of cherry and blueberry fruit with just a slight bite at the finish. For $9 it's well worth the price.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 06:50 PM | Comments (3)

June 05, 2008

A Glass For Your Heart, And A Glass...

For your joints

People who drink alcohol are less prone to the sometimes crippling disease called rheumatoid arthritis compared with non-drinkers, according to a Scandinavian study published on Wednesday.

People who had a moderate alcohol consumption were 40 and 45 percent less likely to develop rheumatoid arthritis compared with people who did not drink or drank only occasionally, it found.

Among those who had a high consumption, the risk was reduced by 50 and 55 percent respectively.

Further study indicated that for people who had "Bingley consumption" the risk was reduced by 85%.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 07:11 AM

June 03, 2008

One More Reason to Drink Up

...Shriners.

Red wine may protect heart from aging’s toll

Study in mice finds natural compound blocks decline in cardiac function

...Most striking was how the resveratrol, like calorie restriction, blocked the decline in heart function typically associated with aging, according to Tomas Prolla, a University of Wisconsin professor of genetics who helped lead the study.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 10:50 PM

May 25, 2008

Tasty Juicy Butt

A few weeks ago I bought myself a Webber Smokey Mountain Cooker, aka "The Bullet", because as much as I love my gas grill sometimes you just want to make some slow-cooked BBQ. I've used it for a few things so far, but I really hadn't done "real" BBQ on it until yesterday, for you see yesterday I did a butt. A wonderful fine tasty pig butt from Costco. The best place in the world to get info on cooking with your Bullet is here, at the Virtual Weber Bullet; it's an invaluable resource and there are tons of very experienced cooks on the forums to answer your questions and help you on your way. Everything I did was based on their advice and techniques.

So I went to Costco and got my butt. Well, butts, actually, because there are 2 in the cryovac package, for a total weight of about 15 pounds. I was only going to cook one, so using the rough cooking time formula of 1.5-2 hours per pound I was looking at something like a 14 hour cook. Let's see, I told our friends to come over at 5, so counting back 14 hours that means I need to put this on at...1 am. As in 1 am right after the wine and steaks and scallops and corn on Friday night. Oh boy.

Not surprisingly, me getting up to cook at 1 am Saturday morning didn't happen, due in large part to the fact that I didn't go to bed until nearly 12:45. And the wine. And the scotch. But mostly the wine. Mostly.

I did manage to get up at 3:30, though. I opened up the cryovac, re-wrapped the butt I wasn't going to cook and popped it in the freezer and tied this beauty up with some butchers twine to hold it together for the rub

The rub I used was from TexasBBQRub.com, and I was also using their method of applying it: you coat the butt with worchestershire sauce and then rub on the, er, rub.

The key to BBQ is low and slow cooking. Low temperature (around 225-250) maintained for a long time will allow the meat to break down and just become the softest, tastiest stuff imaginable. But tending a fire for 12 or 14 hours obviously sucks. A lot. So this fellow named Jim Minion devised a way to get his bullet to cook for up to 18 hours without needing more charcoal. For this he should be awarded the Nobel Prize.

Anyhow, I started the Bullet up using the "Minion Method" (probably 8 lbs of charcoal and 5-6 chunks of hickory) and at 4:15 am put Porky on

It was a bit of a struggle keeping the temp low enough, but over the next few hours I got it to settle in the 250-ish range by adjusting the vents, and by 2:30 in the afternoon the internal temp was up to 170 (you need to get it up to 190) and he looked like this

Now the folks on the forum all sing the praises of the ABT ( which stands for..."Atomic Buffalo Turd") as an appetizer to accompany the piggy. The "atomic" comes from the jalapeño (or hotter) peppers used. I've learned to tred carefully around hot peppers, so I used this great recipe as a starter and made a few minor changes.

Set the 2 packages of cream cheese out to come up to room temp, and wash the peppers in the sink

I used a mix of sweet peppers and mildly hot anaheims (it turns out I was too timid; they needed more kick from the peppers. Next time I will use anaheims and jalapeños).

When the cream cheese is squishy add to it a tablespoon of dried onion, two tablespoons of honey, a heaping teaspoon of garam masala, and 1 1/2 cups grated sharp cheddar

and mix it all up

and let it sit while you de-seed the peppers. On mild peppers like these this is not such a big deal, but when you use the nu-kyoo-lar ones this is a very important step

Put the cheesey goo in a ziploc freezer bag and snip off a corner

and you can pipe the filling right into the pepper

and then you put the two halves back together and wrap a slice of bacon around them, holding it all together with a couple of toothpicks.

Can you hear your arteries crying, Clarice?

You cook those for about an hour at 250 until the bacon is done.

Meanwhile, it's now after 3 pm. Porky's been cooking for about 11 hours and the internal temp is up to 185.

Why, yes, I will. Thank you.

Finally, at 4:45, after 12 1/2 hours of cooking (and not adding any charcoal at all to what I started with in the Bullet) the temp reached 190, so I took the butt off, tightly wrapped it in a double layer of aluminum foil and set it on a folded towel in a cooler in the garage to rest until I was ready to pull it. Our friends arrived at 5, I put the ABTs on the grill, we had the first few rounds of drinks and at 6 we pulled the pork.

Unbelievable. I can honestly say it's one of the tastiest things I've ever cooked.

They left about 1.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 01:01 PM | Comments (14)

May 23, 2008

OUTRAGE ~ I HATE Budweiser, But This

...is just un-American. I'm emailing Pelosi's office.

Belgian brewer InBev NV is working on a $46 billion bid for Anheuser-Busch Cos Inc , according to a source familiar with the situation.

Change the Clydesdales to Belgian DRAFTS?!?!?!

I THINK NOT!!!

Posted by tree hugging sister at 10:39 PM | Comments (3)

Odd How Siblings Separated By Thousands of Miles

...continually think exactly the same.

Comforting in a twisted sort of way. My incomparable husband has thoughtfully made me my first caipirinha of the season and I will blissfully sip as I ponder the wondrous mystery of family.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 08:04 PM | Comments (1)

Hey Porter, Hey Porter!

Tell me it's grillin' time!

Just garlic salt and coarsely ground fresh pepper.

Oh! Look what I found

Thanks for everything, Boss.

To absent friends!

Sweet baby jeebus, this 8 year old Cab is divine. The tannins have really mellowed out and it has almost a raisiny syrupy flavor and mouth feel. Wow. I wish you could taste it.

Well, not really, because there would be less for me.

Update: Reading through that article and hearing their anecdote about their meal at Windows On The World (sigh) reminds me of my Mondavi story: In August of 1992 my Bride and I took a vacation to San Francisco and Napa, and we took the tour of the Mondavi winery. I asked a few questions and I guess somehow gave the tour guide the impression that I appreciated tasty wine so near the end of the tour the tour guide took us aside and told us to "hang back" after everyone else left. So of course we did. She then took us by ourselves to one of the winery's tasting rooms and poured for us a glass of the Mondavi Botrytis Sauvignon Blanc dessert wine. Oh. My. God was it divine. I adore these wines, and this was great. It had this raisin/honey/fig unctuousness and crisp acidity to wash all that sugar away. Sigh....talk about a nectar of the gods.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 07:28 PM | Comments (7)

Memorial Friday Dinner

Woohoo! A full 3 day weekend of gastronomic excess!

Tonight as an appetizer we've got a pound of fresh sea scallops

marinating in the juice of 2 limes with some EVOO (that's what all the cool kids call it) and red pepper flakes. Let that marinate for an hour or two in the fridge, flipping occasionally, and then grill those puppies. Yum!

As the veggie we'll have some grilled corn on the cob

peel back the husk, pull off the silk and then roll the husk back up, sprinkle with a littl water and wrap them in tin foil and grill on the top rack of the grill for, heck, 40 minutes or so.

As the main course I've got a couple of big honking porterhouses lying around here somewhere which I'll...grill.

I haven't decided on the main wine. My urge is to get out some Mondavi Cabs and raise a toast to The Man himself who passed away last week.

We'll have to see.

What are y'all eatin' this weekend?

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 05:28 PM | Comments (6)

May 15, 2008

No Thanks, I'll Stick With Geno's

I don't want schmancy cheese; I want da' Whiz

PHILADELPHIA (CBS 3) ― Sliced, sizzled and slathered with cheese ... the famous Philly cheesesteak serves as an iconic representation of our city and now, an expensive luxury.

That's because Chef James Locascio, of Rittenhouse Square's Barclay Prime, created Philadelphia's "haute" cheesesteak, an upscale version of the sandwich that includes butter poached lobster and shaved truffles.

"It's every ingredient you want to try in a life time in one," said Locascio.

Still, that kind of lavishness doesn't come cheap. For one cheesesteak, expect to pay $100. That is nearly 15 times more than the original.

Truffles? Lobster?

Pffft.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 01:26 PM | Comments (3)

May 13, 2008

"That Is What the Average Punter Wants."

Here. Let me help you with that:

A vicar is to apply for a drinks licence so he can sell wine and beer at his small village church.

The Reverend Geraint ap Iorwerth could be made licensee of St Peter ad Vincula Church in Pennal, near Machynlleth, close to the Powys-Gwynedd border.

He joked that there were plans to serve more than just spirits, though, with lager and wine on the menu too.

Oh, and a punster, too, God love 'im!! (Of course, you'd have to be half in the bag just to read that second line correctly.)

Praise 'n raise ~ it might just catch on. The Reverend's a pretty cutting edge guy himself.

And a tip o' the warm Swill cup to al dente for the find.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 03:30 PM

April 22, 2008

As Crocodile Dundee Might Have Said...

"That's a Potato"

Yum.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 07:21 PM | Comments (5)

What We Were Drinking the Other Night

Lovely. But WHAT to have for dinner with it?! Having spent the whole day in the car, we were loathe to climb in again. So. Improvise, adapt, overcome!
We did a little kitchen reconnoitering to see what we could throw together to save us a grocery jaunt...

Lamb chops in the freezer, ready-to-go gnocchi and some leftover Fresh Market PINGY gorgonzola. Sounds like a plan!

Defrost and clean lambies up, then pop in big enough bag to hold. Then major dad doctored up some Paul Newman's Organic Tuscan Italian by replacing the oil with extra virgin olive oil and dumping in a healthy portion of Penzey's Greek Seasoning. Shake, pour over lambies, seal, squish all around and flip occasionally. Leave 'em.

For the gorgonzola gnocchi sauce, raid the fridge. I started with a big shallot, minced and enough butter to get it going. Sweat the little bugger 'til clear, then in goes about ½C of dry vermouth. (He's a Beefeater 'tini man ~ it's ALWAYS on hand.)

Reduce at med-hi heat until...

...(as I like to say) it's syrupy and "talkin' to ya". Now add about ¾C chicken stock, some parsley and ½ t or so thyme...

...and reduce to about ½ C. Here's where I took it off the heat, got my water boiling for the gnocchi and watched flames shoot skyward up in the backyard.

As you can see, the grill meister has a raging charcoal inferno. He recommends 4 minutes per side, then set on T-bone end for about 3 minutes (saving you raw lambie at the bone). You'll have to tweak this dependent upon the thickness of your loin chops and how hot your grill is.

When he's thrown the flag that there's about 5 minutes left, I pull the gnocchi sauce back on a med-lo heat and in goes 3 or so GENEROUS tablespoons of lo-fat sour cream. Incorporate that...

...then crumble up your cheesy goodness, add to pan, stir until melted...

...and adjust your seasonings. (Everything I use is low sodium, but, conversely, blue cheeses can be very salty, so I hold off adding ANY salt until this point.) Turn off the heat. (But watch to make sure sauce stays warm but doesn't simmer/boil.)

You should already have a boiling pot o' salted water going, so add your happy potato dumplings and stir. These ONLY take about 3-5 minutes, so no wandering off like you do with pasta. Stir occasionally (And VERY gently ~ they disintegrate!) and you will shortly see little ghostly figures...

...floating toward the surface. When it seems like the majority of the gnocchi have made an appearance, drain immediately and add to your sauce.

EVER SO GENTLY, spoon sauce over gnocchi and get them nestled in.

(Honestly, it's like folding something into beaten egg whites ~ GENTLY does it.) You can keep this warm for a short while over lo heat, but letting it sit at length is a no-no.

By this time, if you're as lucky as I am, your multifaceted spouse will have a salad ready to go and his perfectly cooked...

...lamb chops ready to plate with the gorgonzola gnocchi, garnished with chives.
Strategically locate decanted bottle of wine and voilá!



God, I love that man!!

Posted by tree hugging sister at 03:06 PM | Comments (6)

April 19, 2008

What I'm Drinking Tonight

Continuing my Cheap Hootch Quest, and looking to broaden my cultural suaveness, I picked up this bottle of "Ars Poetica Vulcano."

It was only about $8 I think, and I figured that since I don't drink a lot of Italian wines I'd give this a shot.

Blech.

I'm willing to grant that perhaps I got a bum bottle, but this one was foully over-fermented, in that tasty rotten fruit stored in rotten leather sort of way, and thus was promptly consigned to Mr. Drain.

Luckily for me I just happened to have some other wine lying about, the Aresti 2005 Reserve Cabernet from Chile

which checked in at a reasonable $10. At first it was a little austere but as it opened up in the glass it had a nice full bodied feel to it with hints of cigar and mint at the end. Not a fruit bomb by any means but rather a decent classic type of red. Not bad at all. So the evening was saved.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 08:07 AM | Comments (7)

April 16, 2008

What I'm Drinking Tonight

Shaken, not stirred.

Gosh, what do you think, Suzette?

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 10:06 PM | Comments (12)

April 05, 2008

Luscious Breasts

Ken tagged me a week ago with a food meme that Brian had tagged him with. The rules are quite simple:

"The basic requirements were that the food be "peasant" food (or the American equivalent), that it be delicious, simple, cheap to make, and not too healthy."

An additional requirement that made was, as shown by Brian's "Spud Stud" and Ken's "Wavy Gravy," that the name rhyme. Here is my humble entry which I believe fulfills these demanding criteria.

"Luscious Breasts"

2 split chicken breasts (i.e.4 Pamelas, still attached to ribs)
butter
potatoes
1 large red onion
5 cans chicken gravy
2 pints sour cream
salt
pepper

pre-heat oven to 350

open wine

2006 Yellowbird Shiraz from Australia. About $8. Not the thickest shiraz ever, but pretty smooth with some nice full cherry flavors, and for the price a perfectly fine bottle of wine. Umm, let's poor another glass for scientific purposes...

Where was I?

Oh yeah. Place the Pamelas in a large roasting pan, ribs down, and put a pat of butter on each along with some salt and pepper

Put that in the oven and concentrate on the wine for the next 30 minutes or so. The total time they will cook is at least an hour.

After 30 minutes or so as they are cooking take 2 or so pounds of spuds and cut into 1 inch cubes (I used what I had lying about, a combination of red potatoes and fingerlings) and splop them into a large pot for boiling

and get that going on the stove.

Take the onion

and chop it up and put it in a large sauce pan

I let it sit on medium heat for a minute or two just to extract the onions ever so slightly.

Next take the five cans of gravy

and add to the onion with some more fresh ground pepper

and bring it to a slow simmer and let it...simmer for 20-25 minutes or so so the onion flavor gets to mellow and spread throughout the gravy goodness.

When the potatoes are done, drain

and carefully pour the gravy mixture into the pot

and let that sit on the stove over low heat until the Pamelas are done. In fact, now would be a good time to check them. With this recipe there's no harm in slicing them open to take a peek and make sure that they are fully cooked.

When you are confident that they are carefully pour the potato/gravy mixture on top of them

and top with very generous dollops of sour cream

place the pan back in the oven for another 10-15 minutes to take the chill out of the sour cream and let the flavors meld some more

and serve it up piping hot and fresh, a Pamela per plate

Ah, true Comfort Food.

If you feel the urge, something simple like green beans with a little lemon-pepper make a fine side.

And more wine, of course.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 10:36 AM | Comments (5)

Oh Suzette...

Be afraid.

Be very afraid.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 08:48 AM | Comments (14)

April 02, 2008

What I'm Drinking Tonight

So Friday I started out with the decent Portuguese wine below, but as it took me a little longer than I had reckoned to get the burgers ready I had to open another bottle.

I hate that.

Anyhow, in keeping with our "Bing is a cheap bastard" theme I found this Australian Madison Ridge Cabernet Sauvignon 2007 for $7

Now, a quick glance at the calendar tell you that we're only 3 months into 2008, and even granting our dear friends Down Under the benefit of their seasons being bass-ackwards from ours this wine is at best, what, 6-7 months old at most? So I wasn't expecting much.

I was very pleasantly surprised. For $7 this beats the pants off of many $15 wines I've had. It has some nice tannins and good cabernet flavor, with some hints of leather at the end (just the way Ken likes it). I'll definitely pick up a few more bottles just to confirm this experiment...this could be a very good buy.

Oh, and those cheeseburgers you see in the background were very yum.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 07:32 AM | Comments (5)

What I'm Drinking Tonight

I'm trying to find some decent reds under $10, and the Bottle King in town had this on sale for about $9 I think.

Groval Touriga Nacional 2005

Many of the Portuguese reds I've had in the past have had a nasty, corky bite to them, so I approached this one carefully. The aroma was soft and cherry-like, and the first few sips confirmed that. There's not a lot of flavors here, and that's ok. If you want a simple, smooth wine with soft cherry and raspberry flavors than you could do a lot worse than this. There's not much body or tannin structure, but again that's ok; at this price point 'character' tends to mean 'blech'. I'll buy this again.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 07:15 AM

March 02, 2008

Lab And Brussel Sprout: A Tragedy In Two Acts

Did you ever get really frenetically excited by something...especially when you first got it, thinking this was going to be the

BEST

THING

EVUH

Only to be crushingly disappointed once you got your teeth into it?

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 08:53 PM | Comments (10)

What I'm Drinking Tonight

Well, last night daughter was out of town on a ski trip with the youth group at church, so I decided to make mussels again, since Daughter doesn't care for them.

And whoa Nelly did they turn out yummy

But what to drink with them?

Well, I have to admit that I have a soft spot in me for rosé wine, and I thought I'd give this one a try

I know it looks like some sickly sweet pink grenache/white zinfandel type thingy, but trust me, it ain't. It is the Mulderbosch Cabernet Sauvignon Rosé 2006. I think it was about $10, and it really went quite nicely with the mussels. It has, as you can see, a very bright strawberry color and some nice strawberry/pomegranate berry flavors with some light tannins that give it more structure than you might think, but again rosés in general have that, which is why I like them with dishes like this.

Definitely worth buying a few more of.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 08:05 PM | Comments (3)

February 24, 2008

Dang I Love Porterhouse

Just thought I'd let y'all know.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 06:46 PM | Comments (15)

February 10, 2008

What We're Drinking Tonight

The bottle on the left is a Marietta Angeli Cuvée, a 2003 Alexander Valley red wine recommended by our waitress at lunch yesterday. The second bottle is a Pillar Red Box from Australia ~ a shiraz/cab/merlot blend that the purveyor at the liquor store insisted was damn near as yummy as the cuvée, as well as a smidge under half its price. So.

major dad has spent all day smoking country style ribs, I've doctored up some Stouffer's mac and cheese with kick-ass extra sharp Cabot cheddar and we will put said vinos to the test.

Let the games begin.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 07:04 PM | Comments (7)

But Don't Expect Anything "Finger Lickin' Good"

...while you watch our Bollywood selections or the Grammy's.

Animals rights advocates are squawking at a measure that would make fried chicken Kentucky's official picnic food.

State Rep. Charles Siler is sponsoring legislation to assign the designation to KFC's "finger lickin' good" chicken, first served by Colonel Harland Sanders in 1940.

It would leave a fowl taste in your mouth.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 03:04 PM | Comments (3)

January 19, 2008

Burfday Lunch

As Sis so kindly pointed out, yesterday was my birthday, and I took the day off from work and was quite the lazy bumpkin at home. I did manage to rouse myself to make lunch, however

The burgers are from the Stock Yards; they are the trimmings from the divine Filets and NY Strips that they sell, and they're sitting atop some thick slices of Maytag blue cheese."

Orgasms on a bun, my friends.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 08:38 AM | Comments (9)

Christmas Dinner

Oops, a little late in posting this. Here's a quick pic of dinner on Christmas day

The steak au poivre is on the plates, and scattered about are the green beans, twice-baked potatoes, creamed spinach and the Torbreck Shiraz.

Merry Yumness to All!

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 08:15 AM

December 21, 2007

Dear Mr. Lileks ~ I Have a Christmas Pixie

...in the fridge as well...

...but it's bleeding, not bleating.

"Ring On Meat Key"

As if it'd be anything else.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 04:05 PM | Comments (6)

December 02, 2007

What I'm Drinking Tonight: Catching-Up Edition

I realize I'm been most remiss in my booze blogging; I've been taking the photos...mostly. I just haven't gotten around to recording comments on every bottle like I should. So with out much ado here are many of the bottles that have been imbibed here at Bingley Manor in the past few weeks:

How could Mr. Bingley refuse a Bennet?

A little cork aids the digestion...

Ah, Daughter's Birthday!

This wine was a puzzle. The first bottle here was divine, so I bought three more...and every one was sour and horrible.

This was a decent and cheap Aussie Pinot

This was a disappointment. I like the Bogle Zin, and the fellow at the commie store said this was a tasty blend. He was wrong.

This is the first of a series of cheap commie store organic wines. Not bad at all for $8.

Nothing great here

Slightly harsh Malbec

Another good buy for $8

Another cheap but harsh Malbec

A decent Amarone; smooth but just a tad thin; not sure it's worth $24

Yet another decent $8 commie wine

My favorite label in quite a while ( and a damned tasty $15 shiraz!)

That label was worth three pics. And it was a nice smooth berry-filled Shiraz, as well.

Alright, so I think I'm back on track.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 09:22 PM | Comments (2)

November 08, 2007

Why Yes

I will have another slab of ribs

About two years ago, a group of federal researchers reported that overweight people have a lower death rate than people who are normal weight, underweight or obese. Now, investigating further, they found out which diseases are more likely to lead to death in each weight group.

Linking, for the first time, causes of death to specific weights, they report that overweight people have a lower death rate because they are much less likely to die from a grab bag of diseases that includes Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s, infections and lung disease. And that lower risk is not counteracted by increased risks of dying from any other disease, including cancer, diabetes or heart disease.

...Some who studied the relation between weight and health said the nation might want to reconsider what are ideal weights.

“If we use the criteria of mortality, then the term ‘overweight’ is a misnomer,” said Daniel McGee, professor of statistics at Florida State University.

“I believe the data,” said Dr. Elizabeth Barrett-Connor, a professor of family and preventive medicine at the University of California, San Diego. A body mass index of 25 to 30, the so-called overweight range, “may be optimal,” she said.

Bring it on!

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 07:07 AM | Comments (9)

October 26, 2007

Anything I Can Do

...to support the global economy. If it means supporting our southern neighbors, so be it.

Vina Concha y Toro S.A. VCO, Chile's largest producer and exporter of premium wines, reports results for the third quarter 2007, ended September 30.

Net income for the quarter increased 96.1%...

Of course, it doesn't hurt when a 1.5L bottle is $6.50. Then there's a 10% case discount making the Cabernet Sauvignon/Merlot 85/15 bottle an VERY affordable $5.85 each, not to mention no sales tax at the base package store. And the icing on the cake?

It's a damn fine slurp.

Free trade isn't free, but it's sometimes affordable.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 12:00 PM

September 18, 2007

It's Mussel Time!

Sometimes you just have to break down and get back to the basics. Lots of chilled white wine. A fresh loaf of FreedomFrench Bread.

And 2 pounds of mussels.

Now, before all you Men out there wince uncontrollably this next photo is not what you think

My Bride wasn't that mad at me...

That's some nice chorizo that we'll slice up into little bits

and put it in a nice deep saute pan over medium heat. You want to start rendering out some of that tasty chorizo fat like so

While that's happening chop up an onion

and plop it into the pan with the chorizo for a little saute action

Once the onions clarify a little bit and the chorizo is nicely browned put, oh, 3/4 to an inch of white wine in the pan

and also add a 15 oz can of diced tomatoes, juice and all

and turn up the heat to get it simmering.

While that's heating up it's time to play barber...come here you bearded beauty

Now when you buy these things you want to make sure that they smell sweet and fresh; if they smell fishy then order pizza. Keep 'em cool in the fridge, because you want these babies alive. Then put them in a colander and under cold running water and pull off the beards. Discard any mussels that are cracked (hell, I toss any that are open at this point, as well, but I've been told that I'm over-fastidious on this point) and give the shells a light scrub to remove any sandy bits that may be clinging to them. If they are farm-raised then they will be very clean; the wild ones tend to have more true grit.

Now your sauce should be just boiling nicely

so dump those puppies in

and put a lid on them to let them vigorously simmer and cook. Now chop up a big bunch of cilantro

and in the few minutes it has taken to do this the mussels will have opened up beautifully

so dump in the cilantro

and re-cover for a few minutes more.

I realize I've been shamelessly remiss in my drinking.

This Beringer is okay, but for $12 there are much more enjoyable bottles out there. Nothing really off about it, mind you; just a run-of-the-mill wine.

Anyhow, everything looks ready

Ladle (which is a fancy term for 'dump') the contents of the pan into a nice serving dish and place it on the table along with the bread between your Beloved and yourself and dig in

and make sure there's an extra bowl nearby for the empties

Yeah, 2 pounds of mussels was just about right

And two bottles of white, naturally.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 11:32 AM | Comments (8)

September 17, 2007

Chickenfrickenzee

Last Saturday I picked up an interesting bottle of wine. As you know I'm a sucker for wine. Okay, and a sucker of wine, as well. As I was wandering down the "Weird Producing Countries" aisle at the Evil Clown and I came upon this

Herding Cats 2005 Chenin Blanc/Chardonnay blend from South Africa. Looked interesting and at $8 it hit the price point for the first bottle of the evening. I'm usually not a huge Chenin Blanc fan (and no Ken, that's not the name of some Eurotrash band), but the addition of the Chardonnay took away the cloying fruitiness that they can have and made it a clean not overly sweet mildly fruity wine that was very pleasant. But what to cook while drinking? I reached for that old standby Marcella Hazan (and why haven't you bought this book yet?) and decided to make some chickenfrickenzee and risotto. This basically meant I was tied to the stove for the next few hours; luckily there was lots of wine within easy reach.

First the chicken

5 1/2 pounds or so just asking to be hacked into little bits by my Shears of Doom™. So naturally I obliged and took out Mr. Spine

and then greatly reduced Mr. Chicken's ambulatory abilities by removing his wings, legs, and thighs

This left me with the ever-delicate question of the Pamelas, still attached as nature intended.

How exactly does one remove the Pamelas from the bone? Danged if I know. So after barbarically ripping one Pam off the bone in a beastly fashion I decided to leave the other more or less as it was and put my faith in thorough cooking

So there you have it, eight pieces of happily hacked hen looking for a hot time in a pan. But first to attend to my needs.

It really is a rather refreshing wine.

now take a tablespoonish of butter

and get it meltulated with a couple of tablespoons of olive oil in a nice big pan over medium-highish heat

add the chicken

and let it start browning, turning occasionally. While its doing that chop 1/3 of a medium sized onion fairly fine

reserve another 1/3 for the risotto

and chop 4 healthy cloves of garlic into somewhat nicer sized chunks

add the onions, garlic and a sprig of fresh rosemary arrayed in a rakish fashion

and let them sauté for a few minutes, then add, oh, call it 3/4 of an inch of white wine

and when it starts to simmer cover and reduce the heat to medium-low

and let that puppy simmer away for 20 minutes or so whilst you work on wiping out what wine you have at hand.

After a few glasses of wine it's time to get the risotto ready. In a large sauce pan heat up 5 cups of beef broth or stock until it is at a nice slooow simmer

In a sauté pan with a lid get 3 tablespoons of butter and say 2 tablespoons of olive oil sizzlin

sauté the 1/3 of an onion from before that has been reasonably finely chopped

when the onion is clearish add two cups of arborio rice and stir it so it gets well covered with the oniony butter oil

now ladle in some of the stock

and stir it well until the rice absorbs all the liquid.

now do it again and again

until all the liquid is gone. Yep, all 5 cups. It'll take 20 minutes or so.

Now all this ladling and stirring and absorbing is thirsty work, so it's time to open another bottle

Kind of an interesting wine, this one. CMS White by Hedges; a blend of Chardonnay, Marsanne, and Sauvignon Blanc. It had a nice clean crisp fruitiness. Most yum for $12 buckskies. I had bought it to have with the mussels I was cooking the next night...but I got thirsty.

Let's see, the stock's all gone and mostly absorbed

the Frickenzee is looking and smelling frickin' good

...and now things happen fast and furious, so let's remove the buzzard to a platter

dump a heaping 1/2 cup of grated parm onto the rice

dump the juice from one lemon and some shavings from the lemon peel (only yellow stuff; none of the bitter white skin) into the pan the buzzard so recently vacated

turn back to the risotto and turn off the heat, mix the cheese in well until everything is coated and grate some fresh nutmeg on top

turn off the heat and set it aside. Get your chicken juices and lemon all a boiling and reduce it down to a nice tasty sauceitude

And then schpoon it over the 'Fricken and serve with the risotto. Yum!

total cooking time is around 45 minutes.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 09:19 AM | Comments (7)

August 31, 2007

Where We Went To Lunch Today

With apologies to Nightfly for not extending an invite, I had the day off and as my Bride missed our last trip to Genos Daughter and I thought it only fitting to end the summer with one last joyful artery-clogging Cheez Whiz-a-thon

We hopped in the car and toodled the 1:45 or so to Philly for some Orange Delight

The cheese steaks were excellent, and the fries unspeakably sublime. But I must add a word of caution. In a fit of manly exuberance I failed to heed this rather clear sign

And put a healthy slathering of sauce on my steak. Well, 'healthy' is really not the right word as it damn near killed. Sweet baby jeebus it was nu-kyu-ler.

But damned tasty.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 07:49 PM | Comments (5)

August 26, 2007

What I'm Drinking Tonight

Ho golly, have we got a good one here.

Continuing with Tim's most excellent 'go fugly' advice on Aussie wine advice may I present "Molly Dooker "The Boxer" Shiraz 2006"

A gorgeous deep purklely red in the glass, and the taste is simply divine: a soft sweet plum that finishes with a lot of chocolate. Simply amazing. I think it cost in the mid $20s, but I honestly can't be sure as the alcohol content is rated a Whoopadeedoopa stunning 16%, and that loverly level over the 2/3s of the bottle that I have consumed so far makes me much more interested in singing along with Beniamino Gigli at a very loud volume.

And as I'm a baritone and he's the bestest tenor ever, well, it's a good thing my Bride is drinking too.

Did I mention it was 16% alcohol?

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 05:54 PM | Comments (4)

August 16, 2007

What I'm Drinking Tonight

When Tim and I went wine shopping the other weekend he gave me a helpful Rule of Thumb to follow when purchasing Australian wine: "Generally, the uglier the label the better the wine."

With that sage advice in mind I picked up a bottle of this

Slipstream 'Fastback' 2005 Shiraz, which comes in with a glorious 15% alcohol content. Yeah baby!

This is a wine that will taste very hot if you quaff immediately upon opening. But if you let it breathe in a large glass for 10 minutes or so it becomes very smooth and tasty, with a full velvety mouth feel and some very nice subtle blueberry flavors on the finish. Quite yum, and at around $5 very fairly priced for those special occasions.

And what dinner with your Bride is not a special occasion?

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 06:36 PM | Comments (5)

August 15, 2007

My Weekend At 'Bama's

Not surprisingly, most of the weekend consisted of this

combined with a lot of this

Mind you, those sad few whose joys are found in somewhat shallower pursuits were also not forgotten

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 05:57 AM | Comments (4)

August 09, 2007

Whew! Thank Goodness!

Dave had me worried for a while...

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 08:09 PM

August 02, 2007

Gitmo Chicken

I got this recipe from a dear friend of mine who is from Angola, so i guess it should be called Angolan Chicken. But when I saw what I was doing to the poor buzzard, all I could think of was Gitmo...

Anyhow, take a nice whole chicken and place it on your cutting board Pamela's* down

And using poultry shears slice up one side of the spine

(I'm sorry about the blurry-ish photos; my camera and chicken-juiced hands was not a good combo)

and then snip up the other side until the spine comes out in your hands

Muwhahahahaha! I feel so eeevul holding a creature's freshly detached backbone!

Anyhow, flip the spineless creature over and, using your palm in a very real and patriarchy-inspired manner squage the breastbone down with the heel of your palm and break the bugger so the spineless chicken lies more or less flat

Didn't that feel good?

Now take a clove of peeled garlic

*er, um, that would be "breast's down"

and rub it all over that naked little buzzard

Hell, take 2 or 3 cloves of garlic; the more the merrier

Flip it over and rub rub rub

Now generously sprinkle yon beastie with coarse sea salt on both sides and squeeze a lime or two over both sides as well

Flip it Pamela's up and let it sit for an hour or so to marinate

Hmmm, what will I do with you, my pretty?

I'm sure I'll think of something...

Now, I need to warn you that everything doesn't always turn out spiffy here in Bingley Kitchens, due in large part to the fact that I tend to make up a lot of it as I go along, prodded, as always, by the ever-present fruit of the vine. But I am Manly Enough™ to admit my errors and deficiencies, and frying is one of them. I just don't like to do it, and I hate how the house smells for days afterwards. So in that spirit of positive karma I proceeded to make the traditional side dish for this chicken, which is simply potato chips.

However, I thought I'd be swank and make both regular chips and sweet potato chips

The ice-water filled bowl is for the slices of spuds. Slice 'em thin and plop 'em in the water

Yammies too

I guess this helps stabilize the starches. Who knows. It's weird but every recipe says do it for an hour or so so I did

While the spuds was chillin' I decided to get the baste ready for the chicken. Take 4 tablespoons of butter and place it in a Pyrex bowl with a heaping tablespoon of red pepper flakes

and let them co-mingle in the steamy joys of Mr. Microwave

now get some peanut oil warming up in your cast iron skillet

Splop the chicken on the grill. I want to sear one side

and then the other and then reduce the heat under the buzzard as it cooks Pamela's up

basting with the melted butter/pepper sauce occasionally

Notice the heat under the buzzard is turned down, whilst the heat in the un-occupied region of the grill is left on high. This cooks it most yummilly and reduces flare ups.

Meanwhile, back at the Greasy Spoon, carefully slide the spud slices into the 375º or so oil and fry away. I discovered that sweet potatoes cook way more quickly than regular spuds, which was a bit of a drag.

it's really just a pain frying these things, and to me much more effort than they're worth.

oh sure, the few I finished before I got bored were tasty enough when properly salted

but really for me not worth all the effort. So that's the last frying you'll see here for a long time.

Anyhow, by this point the chicken was looking mighty tasty

and the thermometer confirmed it was done to perfection, so onto the platter she went

and thence into our tummies. The lime/garlic/salt/butter/red pepper combination was absolutely yummy, and the chicken was as moist and flavorful as can be. Both Bride and Daughter agreed that the chicken was divine.

Next time I will make it with either grilled corn or mashed spuds as a side.

Eat up!

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 08:24 PM | Comments (9)

July 30, 2007

A Little Taste Of Brazil In Long Branch

So after daughter got done with her basketball camp on Saturday we went to one of our favorite places for lunch

The West End Bakery and Luncheonette in Long Branch. I swear to you that walking in there is like eating in a nice place in the interior of Brazil; the food is simple but wonderful. Beans, rice, sausages and grilled meat. Yum Yum Yum. And then we went next door and bought a case of Guarana and some Dendê oil.

life is good.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 09:33 PM | Comments (2)

If Sid Viscious Had A Kitchen...

I imagine it would look much like mine, with Extra Virgin olive oil, Sea Salt, aged balsamic vinegar,

...and razor blades.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 09:06 PM | Comments (8)

July 25, 2007

Oh Barkeep...

Make my caipirinha a double, please.

yummy-yummy

Good night folks.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 10:21 PM | Comments (6)

July 21, 2007

Well Damn

I've spent all evening cooking a yummy Lamb Curry Soup and when I connected the camera to load the pictures it decided that the card was "not initialized" and now I seem to have lost all of the photos. Damn damn damn.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 08:55 PM | Comments (5)

July 20, 2007

I'm So Ronery Again

Well, it's true. My wonderful Bride and daughter are out of town again this weekend, leaving me to fend for myself in this cruel and heartless world. How's a mild-mannered and kind-hearted fellow supposed to withstand the trials and tribulations that this theocratical chimpyteric world is sure to fling my way with such disdain?

Well, this will help

That's 2.2 pounds of luscious rib steak ( or "a kilo" for those of you born after 1970 or who secretly wish to be Canadian) just dying to have its excess fat trimmed off and be slathered in Cajun seasoning

Now we let that come up to room temperature whilst we attend to the taters

and pop those suckers on to the side burner

Now, I'm going to put the rest of the photos below the fold, and I can not suggest any more strongly that my readers of Gentle and Kind disposition do not under any circumstances continue on, for what they will find below is so shocking, so disheartening that it may call into question their very will to go on. Even now I'm not quite sure how it happened, but I am honor bound to relay it to You, dear Loyal reader, regardless of what the consequences may be after you have fully ascertained the full depth and breadth of the horror I am about to reveal; indeed, the pitiless nature of this betrayal may in fact cause you to shed copious tears as you scream incoherent yet oddly moving rantings at your computer screen.

Today, for the first time in some 5 years,

I bought French wine.

Who can say what causes such madness, such betrayal of all that one holds dear. Perhaps I, like so many other impressionable 43 year olds, was caught up in the feelings of amitié for Sarkozy. Perhaps I'm simply insane. Whatever the shameful roots of such madness, none the less there it is, open on my counter, poured into my glass.

And tasting damned yummy. The 2003 Guigal Côtes du Rhône for $12 is an outstanding value, a very smooth wine with nice cherry and fruit flavors.

Anyhow, now that I've shared my dirty horrid secret with you it's time to put the rib on the grill

My thought was I'd get the grill as hot as I could, which sadly for me is only around 600º, sear both sides quickly and then stand it up rib down for a slower cooking that would let the outer layer of fat tastily enjuicify the meat.

So while that was happening it's time to check out the vineyard, which sadly is not doing well.

Roughly 50% of the vines have died, and I'm desperately trying to get the surviving ones to flesh out the trellis as my Bride has made a few subtle comments about the look of the 'clothesline' in the back yard

Next Spring I'll replant the vines that have died, assuming these survive. Ah, the life of a Gentleman Farmer.

No wonder Mr. Jefferson died in debt.

meanwhile, back on the grill I've shifted the rib from the hot side to the cooler side for some slower cooking

Bonjour!

The steak, much like me after a few more drinks, has sadly fallen over

but it is looking quite tasty and at the desired degree of doneness.

as are the spuds

So dump the spuds into a colander and into the still-hot pot add 1/4 stick of butter and 4 heaping tablespoons each of parmesan cheese and feta cheese. Dump the steamy hot spuds back on top to help things melt and add a quarter cup or so of half and half (if you drink sufficient quantities of red wine then you can gleefully spit into the face of cholesterol) and the secret ingredient

ah, whole nutmeg! How shall I sing the praises of thee? seriously, throw away all the ground nutmeg you possess and buy whole nutmeg and scrape/grate it yourself fresh as needed

the flavor is indescribably delicious, and then you put the little nutmegian nugget back in the jar for another day

and hopefully you haven't shaved too much fingertip into the dish

But now it's time to eat. ah! Look at the size of this beast!

I feel like Fred Flintstone!

After polishing off the brontosaurus rib I plopped the potatoes in the juices for dessert

Washed down with the rest of the wine and I am one happy camper.

a very full and drunk camper, but a happy one.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 09:44 PM | Comments (12)

July 17, 2007

What I'm Drinking Tonight

Man, I know it's only Tuesday but it sure feels like at least Thursday.

and I really really need this

the dirtiest martini you can imagine, chock full of blue cheese stuffed olives

Come here you wild rascal you...

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 09:10 PM

July 11, 2007

Pour Mon Frere Bingley et Mademoiselle Suzette

My inestimable local food columnist has renewed my faith in her choices yet again. I give you :

Chicken Spaghetti

1 (2-pound) package spaghetti
1 teas margarine
12 boneless chicken breasts
Accent seasoning, to taste
Garlic powder, to taste
Onion powder, to taste
Lawry's seasoned salt, to taste
(Getting mighty tasty here, aren't we...? ~ ths)
Dash of black pepper
1 cup milk
1 (8-ounce) box Velveeta cheese
1/2 (10 3/4 ounce) can Cream of Chicken soup
1/2 (10 3/4 ounce) can Cream of Mushroom soup
1/2 (10 3/4 ounce) can Cream of Celery soup
1 (16-ounce) bag frozen green peas
1 (8-ounce) bag shredded mild Cheddar cheese

Preheat oven to 350º
Boil spaghetti according to package directions, adding margarine. Drain.

Season chicken with Accent, garlic powder, onion powder, seasoned salt and pepper.
Sauté chicken in skillet until done. Cut into bite-size pieces.

Coat two 9 inch by 11 inch or one 15 inch by 18 inch casserole dish with non-stick spray. In a saucepan, combine milk and Velveeta cheese. Cook over medium heat until cheese is melted.

Place chicken in dish. Layer spaghetti noodles, melted cheese and (1/4 can each) soups. Top with spaghetti. Layer half bag of peas, melted cheese, remaining (1/4 can) soups, peas and spaghetti. Pour remaing cheese over top.

Bake for 25 minutes at 350 degrees, or until peas are done.

Sprinkle cheddar cheese over entire top and place back in oven for 5 minutes until cheese is melted.

Serve with Granny's yeast rolls* and a tasty dessert.

*ths note: You'll have to come up with Granny's yeast rolls on your own ~ typing this was ghastly enough.

Bone appateet.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 04:41 PM | Comments (3)

July 08, 2007

I Got Yer Live Earth Right Here

While Gorezilla was jetting about telling us to use less fuel and our own Governor Corzine was signing and touting some legislation to ruin our economy

EAST RUTHERFORD, New Jersey (Reuters) - New Jersey became on Friday the first U.S. state to mandate sharp greenhouse gas reductions by 2050 to help fight climate change.

The law, signed by Gov. Jon Corzine, a Democrat, makes New Jersey the latest state to bypass the Bush administration by setting mandatory regulations to fight emissions of gases that scientists link to global warming.

"We want to send a message to Washington. Wake up, get with the program and start doing something about greenhouse gases," Corzine told reporters at Giants Stadium on the eve of former Vice President Al Gore's international Live Earth concerts.

The Global Warming Response Act mandates cuts of greenhouse gas emissions throughout New Jersey's economy by about 16 percent by 2020 and 80 percent by 2050 in the country's most densely populated state.

(hopefully Gov. Speedracer will realize that if he drives 55 instead of 90 he might cut down on emissions)

Yes, while all these bloviating gas bags were doing all types of emitting in the name of conserving I was grilling, charring as much flesh as I could

That's 7 pounds of spare ribs, some filet mignon, 2 buffalo steaks, some grilled corn on the cob and twice-baked potatoes, because you've got to love anything that makes you use the oven twice.

Oh, and of course it was all washed down with wine from Australia to maximize the carbon footprint.

Hear Gaia scream.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 09:46 AM | Comments (11)

July 02, 2007

I'll Show You "Sophisticated"

Tim Blair has a very kind post up talking about how all these Gorezilla concert goers who think they are going to a "New York" concert for Mamma Gaia are actually going to find themselves in the midst of a New Jersey swamp. In the midst of comments from certain folks who should know better than to abuse my beloved state dear Gary from Jersey makes the following statement

Look. We got the best food, loudest women, greatest beaches and the craziest stories in the country. Mr. Bingley can probably give you lists for all those because he’s more sophisticated, except maybe about the loud women. The rest of you? Just send your money and stay home. We’ll finish the beer for you.

Now, I must humbly admit that every word of that is true.

And to prove my sophistication, especially combined with the approaching holiday, it is time for me to once again invite you, Dear Reader, to Say 'Hello' to MacInslosh™

Yes, by this time tomorrow my dear MacInslosh will be holding not one but two of those most glorious of Australian gifts to the civilized world, the box-wine; both a Red and a White as you will see below the fold on the custom desktop print. 10 liters of joy in a handy, compact case.

I love this country.

Let the celebrations begin!

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 06:12 PM | Comments (4)

May 29, 2007

One Fish, Two Fish, But No Red Fish

And damned straight there's no Blue Fish, either. Blech, I can't stand that stinky greasy fish. I really never ate seafood until after I was married; it's been sort of a life project of my Bride's to get me to branch out a bit. Needless to say it's rare when seafood is cooked here at Netherfield, but for Mother's Day I thought I'd give my Bride a treat. Well, two treats, really: first, I'd cook her a yummy (hopefully) dinner on Saturday night, and then, secondly, I'd leave town on Sunday afternoon for a few days. Win-win for her all around.

Obviously one of the major concerns one has when planning a meal is what to drink. My Bride has always been rather partial to Gavis, and this is a luverly one

Araldica Gavi La Luciana 2005. For $10 you get a smooth, medium bodied wine with some very nice lemon and mineral undertones. A very nice summer wine for fish and, heck, just everyday sipping.

But now on to the grub...

I thought I would fry some fish and serve it with risotto and asparagus. After flipping through Marcella Hazan I found a few recipes that seemed tasty and tweakable. As an aside, do buy her book; it is loaded with great stuff. Anyhow, first things first was to get the rice for the risotto cooking. Pretty standard stuff, I got a bag of Arborio rice and got that a going using the tried and true 2 parts water to one part rice ratio. Once simmering you can forget it for 20 minutes and concentrate on the wine other parts of the meal.

Starting the risotto is the second easiest part of this. The easiest is cooking the asparagus: simply trim off the ends of the asparagus and place it in a shallow vegetable dish with about a half inch of water. Cover this with plastic wrap, poke a hole or two in the wrap and put it in the microwave. Approximately three minutes (more or less depending on your micro) is all it takes to cook it perfectly. Trust me on this.

So I minced up half a medium onion and got that sizzlin in a few tablespoons of olive oil

added about the same amount of minced celery

let that cook for a few minutes than add two heaping tablespoons of capers

What I want to know is who decreed that capers must come in these stupid narrow jars that no spoon known to non-coke users will fit into? I had to use a knife blade to carefully ladle the darn things out. A big pain.

Anyhow, once that has melded nicely you can remove that pan from the heat and set it aside. This dish originally calls for one type of fish, but I thought it would be fun to cook both swordfish

and tuna

so I got nice sized steaks of each (dang near a pound per). In a separate pan that's big enough to hold both steaks get some (say 1/2 inch deep) rapeseed canola oil warming over medium heat (it doesn't need to be nu-kyu-ler). Carefully dredge the steaks in flour

Notice I said "carefully." As you can see the steak slipped off the fork as I was putting it on the plate and the counter (and especially the floor) got flour bombed, which elicited a f-bomb of a different nature from me...

Now play Viking and fling your victims into the boiling oil!

Give 'em 3-4 minutes per side, depending on thickness and how well you like your fish done. The nice thing about using tuna and swordfish is that when you are done frying the fish your house doesn't smell like you've been frying fish.

Meanwhile the rice should be just about ready

Blend into the rice a couple ounces (the more the cheesier) of buffalo mozzarella, a few tablespoons of good grated parmigiano-reggiano and several fresh basil leaves that you've ripped into medium sized pieces and set this aside for a few minutes, covered, so the flavors can melt and meld.

Warm up the pan with the onion mixture in it, and transfer the steaks to it.

Turn on the microwave for three minutes to cook the asparagus.

Add a couple of tablespoons of white wine vinegar to the pan with the steaks and cook over medium heat for a few minutes, flipping the steaks to coat them on both sides and letting some of the liquid cook off

Remove the fish to a warmed platter

And serve immediately, half a steak of each type per plate with all leftover juices spooned on top, with the risotto and asparagus.

And more wine.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 09:34 AM | Comments (20)

May 02, 2007

Bwaawck, Bwaawck, Bwaawck

At long last! A finger lickin' good decision and a judge who's not a fat head dumb cluck.

Trans Fat Lawsuit Against KFC Tossed Out

...In an occasionally sarcastic opinion, U.S. District Judge James Robertson said Dr. Arthur Hoyte could not show that he was harmed by KFC's use of the artery-clogging fats.

That was enough to doom the lawsuit, but Robertson also noted other flaws in the case.

"While it might be appropriate for this court to find, as a matter of law, that the consumption of fat -- including trans fat -- is indeed within the reasonable expectations of the consumers of fried chicken and french fries prepared in fast food kitchens, it is not necessary for me to reach that question," Robertson wrote.

And in response to Hoyte's claim that customers have a growing understanding of the dangers of trans fats, Robertson wrote: "If consumers are increasingly aware of trans fat, where do they expect to find it if not in fast food restaurants?"

I'm dying here.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 01:15 PM | Comments (1)

April 26, 2007

I Was Looking For Any Excuse NOT to Post This

...from Wednesday's fish wrap, but the Lord hath sent a sign...

Hugh Grant arrested over ‘baked beans attack’

Photographer accuses British actor of assault with plastic tub of food

...that I dare not ignore.

To dearest Suzette and Bingley,

While it may not contain soup, it does contain a product...from a can.

Bon Appétit!,
thsister {:^)

Pork and Bean Bread

1 cup raisins 1 cup boiling water

1 (16-ounce) can pork and beans, undrained

3 eggs

1 cup oil

2 cups sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1 teaspoon baking soda

½ teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon baking powder

3 cups all-purpose flour

1 cup chopped nuts

Combine raisins and water. Set aside to cool. Remove pork from pork and beans.

Beat together beans, eggs, oil and sugar until well mashed and blended. Stir in vanilla, cinnamon, baking soda, salt and baking powder. Blend in flour. Fold in raisins and nuts.

Pour into 2 greased and floured loaf pans. Bake at 325 degrees for 50 to 60 minutes, or until done.

*If you use smaller loaf pans, reduce cooking time.

Delightful, n'est pas?

Posted by tree hugging sister at 11:48 AM | Comments (11)

April 19, 2007

Gin, Burgers and Zin

My loving spouse thoughtfully made me a dee-lightful cocktail...

...and thoroughly enjoyed his Beefeater 'tini, prior to his whipping up a classic Casa de Major Dad fiesta feast.

Tonight's menu includes a Caesar salad, lovelybloodypremium grass fed chuck lovingly transformed into "Major Dad's World Famous Cheeseburgers ®". He is making me a 'Black and Blue' ~ Prudhomme's 'Blackened Redfish' seasoning sprinkled on the outside and crumbled Maytag blue cheese added at the very last second while still on the grill. major dad is having Vermont Cheddar ~ a masterpiece of simplicity.

We'll be imbibing a lucious Bourassa Vineyards 2004 Odyssey³ Zin with our burgers and fries. After Bingley's magnificent gesture for major dad's retirement (a wine shipment of EPIC proportions), we found ourselves emotionally attached to the Terrazas Malbec. Imagine our delight as we stumbled over the Reserva today. It will be a divine accompaniment to the tiramisu and black raspberry/white chocolate cheesecake on tap for dessert.

Nums.

I am a lucky girl, n'est pas?

Posted by tree hugging sister at 07:35 PM | Comments (5)

April 05, 2007

Worthy Is The Lamb That Was Slain

And hath ended up at my ShopRite

I can't attend the Maundy Thursday service at church tonight, so what better way to spend the evening than cooking some lamb?

Dinner tonight will be pan-fried lamb chops, wild rice, and asparagus. First, the wild rice. It cooks for 60 minutes, so you best get it on right away. And since the recipe just says 'liquid' I'm going to use chicken stock instead of water to give it some added flavor

So let's get the stock boiling so the rice can start the long slow cooking process

Who would have thought my Irish relatives were involved in the wild rice trade?

Anyhow, think of some way to occupy yourself for 45 minutes and then rinse the asparagus and put them in a vegetable dish with about an inch of water and cover with plastic wrap. Oh and cut a few holes in the wrap, too, for the old steam-action.

Set that aside for as minute, as it only takes 3 minutes to cook in the microwave, so you can leave that for the end.

Now as my Bride is 50% Danish I always happen to have boiling pots of oil at the ready in our household in case her Viking blood gets the better of her (those of you who have alternative relationships should put on a pan of vegetable oil at medium high heat at this point)

and this will come in handy for the next stage, as first we coat the chops with parmesan

then egg

then plain bread crumbs

then pop them into the Viking-O-Vat

Figure about 4 minutes per side. Now it's ben about an hour so let's see how the rice is doing

excellent. Microwave the asparagus for 3 minutes and take out the chops

Yum. Now savvy readers and savvy labs

will have noticed that there were 12 chops originally but somehow only 9 made it onto the platter. Where'd the other 3 go?

Oh yeah!

Assemble and enjoy!

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 10:33 PM | Comments (13)

April 01, 2007

Feijoada Update

There's only one roblem with feijoada: it takes so darn long to cook that I end up having far too many caipirinhas to post anything that night. And that may be a good thing.

Anyhow, when we last saw our hero

He was feeling very sad and depressed because, as Bart correctly noted in the previous post, there were leftovers being used that he assumed he had dibs on. Well, I know the odors this boy is able to produce on regular foods; if you think for one minute he's getting marinated pork, or god forbid beans, you have another thing coming. I don't care what cute faces you make. NO!

besides, there are my needs to attend to

Yum yum.

A few weeks ago I posted a few caipirinha pics, and our new friend Cachaça Dave was kind enough to mail me a new muddler with the proviso that I check out his brand of Brazilian hootch. Proving once again that I can indeed be bought, and bought cheaply, I went out and got a bottle

Hmmmm

A very interesting cachaça. It's aged in new oak for a year, and it contains the barest schmidgen of corn spirits. It has a sweet oakeyness to it, very different from the smokey flavors and molasses flavors one gets from other cachaças. Quite tasty, but I need to do more, ahem, research before I'm willing to say it's the best.

Oh yeah, the food! The nice thing about cooking this recipe is that timing just doesn't matter. So many recipes are very precise and if you cook something just a few seconds too long it's ruined. Not so with this. Cook it an extra hour? Yippee! Time for another drink...

Anyhow, as the beans have been gurbling along for a few hours it's time to thicken the beasties up. Remove around a cup or so into a small pan and smash the beejeebus out of them (in a loving and christian sense, of course)

And then mix the resulatnt paste back in to the main pot. This will give the beans much more body.

Oh damn, look at that

We'll correct that little problem.

In the meantime, drain the meat bits

and then mix them in to the main pot o'beans. In a separate pan start sauteeing a large onion and lots of garlic, all chopped up in some olive oil.

and them mix them in as the following action photo Daughter took amply demonstrates

Oh damn, I need another

(now you know why I needed a full day to recover before I posted this)

"Looking for scraps in all the wrong places..."

dum-dee-dum-dee-dum killing time while the beans cook

I'm thinking of a word. It starts with "N" and ends with "O".

I found some frozen Pão de queijo (cheese bread), so I thought we'd give them a try

Now, as a side dish I thought I'd make some farofa. So in a pan melt some butter and get a smallish onion that has been well chopped sizzling with some bacon bits

add some manioc flour

add 1 egg that has been beaten

Now, cooking is hard work, so don't forget yourself

Now add some roughly chopped collard greens to the pan, and cover and let it wilt over medium-low heat

In about ten minutes...

You want to serve the feijoada over some plain rice. Assemble it in a nice deep plate

and life is good!

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 11:00 PM | Comments (2)

March 31, 2007

What's Cooking Thread

Well, it's Saturday, and that means I've got lots of time to putz around in the kitchen. One dish that I love that I've been meaning to give a go is feijoada (pronounced "feh-ZWA-dah"), which is the Brazilian national dish. It is a bean stew that was first concocted by the slaves out of beans and whatever meat they could cobble together, so the first thing is to set the beans a'soaking.

And now we wait a few hours.

Which gives me time to make sure I have sufficient limes and cachaça on hand for the caipirinhas that are required to be consumed with feijoada. Really...they're required.

Okay, so a couple of hours have gone by, during the course of which I've changed the water on the beans 3 times as they've expanded and to clean them. Now I've covered them with a few inches of clean water and turned the heat on to bring them to a boil, after which I'll add a bay leaf and then turn the heat down and let them simmer for a few hours. Now we must turn our attention to the swine.

Big chunks of smokey bacon!

Big chunks of choriço!

Some pork ribs

And what's left of the pork tenderloin we had for dinner last night

Put all that porcine perfection in a separate large pot and cover with water

and bring to a boil

and then reduce this to a simmer as well. You want to let this gurble along for a few hours to cook everything and to de-salt the meat.

I'll be back later!

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 04:26 PM | Comments (3)

Coffee Pørn

I have a horrible, hideous confession to make. I spent $200 on a coffee maker. And no, it's not some Italian espresso maker, because I frankly don't like espresso. I spent $200 on a drip coffee maker, A Dutch drip (why does that sound like some STD?) coffee maker, that you can only get from one place here in the states.

And it makes the best damned coffee I've ever had.

Behold, my friends, gleaming stainless-steelitude that is

the Technivorm MoccaMaster

I mean, when you say that in your best Ahnold voice it just sounds too cool. And as I said the coffee is fantastic; why is described here, but suffice it to say that with the consistent proper temperature that this maintains during the brew cycle it makes the smoothest, fullest-flavored pot of coffee you'll ever have. As an added bonus, this sucker is fast. It makes a full pot in under 5 minutes, which leaves our old Krups machine that you see cowering in the backround of the top picture in its dust. And the carafe keeps the coffee quite tasty for a long time.

If you love drip coffee, and if you really don't want to make a mortgage payment this month, get one.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 11:55 AM | Comments (12)

What I Drank Wednesday Night

Bottles in the middle of the week are a bad idea, especially when you have to get up at 4:30 like I do. But sometimes you and your Bride have such stressful days that you need to declare a Wednesday to be, in fact a Saturday so that the consumption is okay.

Such was the case this week. And I chose the Torbreck 2005 Woodcutter's Shiraz

as our "Saturday" night bottle. It runs about $21, and it has a 93 rating from Parker. Now the first thing you notice is that this wine will never be corky in the glass, never:

Some folks aren't comfortable with screwtops, but not me. I've had too many bottles of wine that were only a few years old but were ruined by bad leaky corks. And since I consume the weightier part of the wine I buy within 5 years of it's vintage the longterm aging advantages of cork really aren't an issue for me. Sure, you miss the 'pop' of the cork pulling free when you first open the bottle, and that truly is one of the happiest sounds that God in his wisdom has blessed us with, but you also 'miss' on the sounds of cursing that you hear/make when you discover whilst out on your picnic that you've left the corkscrew home...

Really, what matters in a wine is right here

And I can see why Parker likes this wine so much: it is very full bodied and loaded with fruit, big heavy cplummy fruit. Yum yum. It is, sadly, slightly out of sorts on the finish, however; there's just a discordant note struck by the tannins and high alcohol content as it slides off your palate (and this may in fact mellow out in two or three years), but all in all it is a very nice wine that's worth having a few about the house of.

There was also one hell of a discordant note struck when my alarm went off all too soon the next morning, as well...

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 11:15 AM | Comments (3)

What I Drank Last Weekend

Sorry for the delay. I had a couple nice bottles. The first was the Peter Lehman 2001 "The Barossa" Shiraz

At around $15 it's not bad. Decent fruit but just a touch too many tannins on the finish. But that was just a prelude to one of the nicest wines I've ever had: The Ridge 2003 Pagani Ranch Zinfandel

I made the Ronery Steak au Poive for my Bride when she returned (there was no avoiding it after she read the posts) and Major Dad had been very clear that this was a wine not to be missed so after a bit of looking I was able to find a bottle at Vingo in Eatontown.

It runs about $32 I think, and

Oh

My

God

is it worth every penny. Simply massive amounts of cassis and plum fruity jamminess jumps and swirls all around in your mouth as you swill it. It is mostly Zinfandel but contains 6% Alicante Bouchet and 4% Petite Sirah. It is simply a stunningly yummy wine, and do not hesitate to buy it if you are lucky enough to see a bottle in a store.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 10:51 AM

March 21, 2007

If I Follow This Advice

...why bother eating there at all?

Chinese restaurant food unhealthy, study says
Menus loaded with sodium, saturated fat and calories — even the veggies

...The group says there is no safe harbor from sodium on the Chinese restaurant menu, but it offers several tips for making a meal healthier:

* Look for dishes that feature vegetables instead of meat or noodles. Ask for extra broccoli, snow peas or other veggies.
* Steer clear of deep-fried meat, seafood or tofu. Order it stir-fried or braised.
* Hold the sauce, and eat with a fork or chopsticks to leave more sauce behind.
* Avoid salt, which means steering clear of the duck sauce, hot mustard, hoisin sauce and soy sauce.
* Share your meal or take half home for later.
* Ask for brown rice instead of white rice.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 10:30 AM | Comments (6)

March 10, 2007

Coq Au Can

Faithful readers will recall the last time I posted on cooking Beer Can Chicken. Well, it's the weekend, and I need to drinkcook so I decided to see how far I can modify this technique. So tonight we're having the classic dish Coq au Vin except I'm cooking it on a can on the grill.

I hope.

Anyhow, as a delightful prelude let's set some butter out to soften.

And then I'm off to Daughter's basketball game while it room temperaturizes.

Okay, now that it's all mush-like let's complete the process with half a teaspoon each of thyme and marjoram.

Cover that and put in the fridge for later.

Now in a large bowl put some wine, a couple cloves of chopped garlic, and some tarragon

Add the whole buzzard and drench with whatever is left in the bottle

Cover with plastic wrap and pop in the fridge for a few hours to marinate.

a few hours...what to drink to occupy the time...

Well, since the weather is getting warmer methinks it's time to have some caipirinhas, no?

Since we last looked at these beauties I've both redone my kitchen (thanks be to Baby Jeebus) and gotten some pointers from some Brazilian friends on how to improve the recipe.

I've also gotten a decent wooden smasherooskie

Here's the new method: slice off the lime skin, as it adds bitterness

Lime nekkid!

One lime per highball, cut into eighths. Add 2 heapin' spoons of sugar

Gently yet firmly mash into an oozing pulp

add cachaça in roughly an equal volume

and then some ice and sip away!

Hmmm, interesting tasting cachaça, this brand "PiraPora".

Goodness, is my drink gone already? Maybe I'll have another using a different brand...

tra-la-la-la-la

mashmashmash

smells a little better

Tastes a little better too; a tad more smokey/sweet. Yum!

Now it's time to get the Bossa Nova going on the ipod.

I love killing time while the buzzard marinates!

Speaking of which, an hour or so has gone by, so time to flip.

Oh damn. Running low again.

Time to make another for my Bride...

Let's start preppin' those handsome sweet potatos

damndamndamn

Better switch to wine; another caipirinha and I might jump on the grill myself

Let's see how this is

This is quite tasty; very soft tannins and lots of full, forward fruit. And only $13!

Meanwhile, back at the Yammityville Horror...

wash, skin and chop up the yams

No, it's yam not lamb

and put them in a big pot of water

they'll take at least 45 minutes to cook; you don't need to start them yet, however

Now roughly chop an onion

it goes in the base tin under le buzzard.

Trim a large shallot for the neck opening

Place the onions in the base around the can holder.

Now I must most sincerely apologize for the choice in cans. with all my soul I intended to use a beer can, but the only can I had was a can of Coors, and when I emptied it (into moi, of course) I noticed it had a lining on the inside of it. The can claimed this was to keep the beer even 'fresher', but it looked to me like some sort of plastic lining, which is not something that I wanted to cook on a grill with, so I substituted a can from Daughter's most recent Shirley temple.

Anyhow, fill the can 2/3 of the way with a nice red wine and add a few cloves of garlic and some marjoram. This will boil up nicely while the buzzard cooks.

And now place Tweety on the holder

remember that herbed butter you made a few hours ago? Time to get it

time to get it and rub the outside of Tweety with it

place the big shallot in the neck opening and place a big glog of herbed butter on top of that

fill the base of the tin with the wine and garlic from the marinade

but don't fill it as full as I did. I have no idea how I managed to carry this outside to the grill without spilling wine all over the place...

have the grill at around 350º; this will cook Tweety in around two hours without burning

Find some way to occupy the first hour and 15 minutes or so

then start the sweet spuds a boilin'

after another 45 minute...why is that a thermometer in your chest or are you happy to see me?

Nurse Jones...scalpel!

Dump the spuds into a colander and add a stick of butter and some cinnamon to the pan

dump on the drained yamsters and mash away, mash away home

Slices look mighty yum

Now I did buy some broccoli to steam and have with this...but I was having too much fun drinking and never got around to making it. bah, who needs it!

It was quite tasty and very juicy. The can method is a fantastic way to cook chicken.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 10:24 PM | Comments (8)

While There Were No Bloody Slabs of Bingley Style Beef

...draining on the countertop, we WERE settling in for a delightful dinner of Jamaican jerk pork loin chops, black beans and rice, a major dad avocado/heirloom tomato/Maytag blue cheese stack...

...and delightful quaff, when WHAT should come ringy-dinging at the front door...?
None other than the Squid Terrorist with his latest public service message.

You'll notice the environmentally friendly aspect of it ~ a freestanding pedestal base, vice using a nasty spike through the miscreant's front lawn. Or duct taping it to his Suburban.

Ever the gentleman, our neighbor is (sometime before Daylight Savings kicks in) going to make the stop-sign ignoring criminal rue the day that flamingos became too expensive to flambé.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 08:59 PM | Comments (2)

March 08, 2007

It Was A Cruel Winter At Chateau Bingley

We lost a couple of the fledgling vines

to both the really hot/really cold Goreian stress of this schizophrenic season

and the brawny Gaian blusteries that swept across our littoral abode.

Hopefully the precious few that remain will blossom anew...

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 07:47 AM | Comments (1)

March 03, 2007

I'm So Ronery, Part 2

Well, a few hours have gone by and I've shockingly cracked open a bottle of wine

The Terrazas 2005 Malbec is an excellent wine. Rated 88 or so by, oh hell I forget who but it is quite yum BUT you must let it breathe in the glass for 30 minutes before you quaff. I'm serious. If you pour a glass and drink it right away it has quite a bite on the finish. trust me, let this wine open up and it will be one of the finest $11 bottles you have ever had.

Anyhow, as I related below, I'm all alonesome and decided to make some steak au poive to assuage my lonelitude. The recipe for the steak is from a cookbook by my fellow UVa alum William Rice.

What's required are two filets

1 1/2 tablespoons crushed black peppercorns
1 tbl unsalted butter
2 tbl olive oil
2 tbl cognac
1/3 cup heavy whipping cream.

I love that name...whipping cream.

Anyhow...

Put the crushed pepper on a plate

and coat each filet with the pepper and set them aside to come to room temp

While the filets are experiencing global warmering it's time to work on the side dish. I am a big fan of broccoli rabe, and I have a tasty recipe that I've coagulated from various sources. What you need for Bingley Rabe™ is the following:

1/3 lb sweet italian sausage, sliced
1 medium onion, chopped
1/2 small anchovy tin, drained
minced garlic to taste (i.e. a lot)
chicken stock
thyme
crushed rosemary
1/2 lb broccoli rabe
1 1/2 tbl olive oil (extra virgin if you've got one to spare)
2 15 oz (or so) cans of cannellini beans, drained and rinsed

Brown the sausage

Check to make sure there's enough cognac left. And there's not. So if you're out of Rémy

No one will complain if you upgrade the hootch to Courvoisier

Remember, your guests deserve the finest.

Or you do, if you're dining alone like I am.

And don't forget the wine

OH DAMN!!!

Where's the corkscrew..Anyhow, while the sausage is gesizzling open and drain the anchovies

Drain off the sausage juice and return to the heat, adding the anchovies, about half the tin, and the olive oil

let that cook over med/low heat for a few minutes until the anchovies have basically disintegrated, then add the onions

Let that slowly cook for a few minutes then get the garlic ready

While you're peeling the garlic don't forget your bestest buddy who's lying at your feet

Dump the garlic in the pan and let it sauté with the other yummies

when the onions are mostly clear add the beans, thyme, rosemary and enough chicken stock to cover

Make sure you are well hydrated

Bring to a boil

then reduce the heat to a gentle simmer and cover for 20-25 minutes or so.

**Gratuitous Gadget Plug**

I love my Oxo can opener. it's one of those funky ones that opens the lid from below, so there are no sharp edges, no little metal curls falling in your food

Deep breath. Ah.

okay,.. Now rinse the broccoli rabe (I don't chop it; I like the longer pieces, so I cut it straight from the bundle from the store)

and plop it on top of the bean mixture

Now, as an aside, this is an autofocus camera. I know I'm getting somewhat tipsy, but the camera should still be in focus, darn it!

Oh well. replace the cover and let that cook over the lowish heat.

Now, back in Steakville, in a decent sized pan heat the olive oil and butter over fairly high heat

When it's pretty darn hot add the filets

cook for roughly 4 minutes and then flip...and try not to notice the splatters all over the stove

cook for another 4 minutes and remove to a plate

pour out the grease in the pan but DO NOT wipe it out; in a separate small sauce pan heat the cognac to a boil

put the filets back in the original pan and pour the boiling cognac on top of them...and ignite with a long-handled match

shake the pan about as the flames burn out to burn off all the fat and loosen all the tasty bits; once the flames are out transfer the filets to the plate. Sneak a quick peek at the beans

Add the heavy cream to the cognacy pan

and bring it to a boil, stirring constantly for 2 minutes or so as the sauce thickens and collects all the tasty vittles that are in the pan

spoon the sauce over the filets, add the beans and broccoli rabe mix

and enjoy

Oh baby I love you

Why do I feel like having a cigarette...

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 11:11 PM | Comments (7)

I'm So Ronery

Well, I took my Bride to the airport today. She's going out of town to spend a few days with her pop and daughter is off on a church retreat this weekend so that leaves me all alone.

Well not completely.

But as you can see he's bummed too. While I do have a few friends here to help me pass the time

my main thoughts have turned to food. What to eat... garlic pizza? While that's always a fave I've set my sights higher...

Tenderloin!

I have a hankerin' to have steak au poive for dinner tonight, and I refuse to pay $20 a pound at the store for a few filets, so I bought a whole tenderloin at Costco

and I'm going to trim the beastie myself. It's really not that difficult to do, and as you can see from the price tag it is much cheaper per pound to do this yourself. While $80 is nothing to sneeze at we'll get at least 4 full meals out of a tenderloin this size which makes it an affordable treat. I must warn you Gentle Reader that I'm self-taught in the Sam Peckinpah method of trimming out a filet, however, and I won't object if any of you offer corrections to my technique.

Anyhow, first thing I do is cut off the end of the Cryovac bag and let the excess blood drain.

After it's reasonably drained remove the rest of the bag and behold Jabba's Tongue

Start by peeling off the plastic-like membrane and loose fat

You'll notice that the tip really is not useful for steaks, so I cut off about 3" from the tip and cut it into smallish cubes

Oh, you know what's coming, don't you? Look at that tail all a-blur!

Who's your buddy?

Meanwhile Bing the Ripper™ keeps trimming of sinew and excess fat globs

Trim trim trim

Back so soon?

Dude, if I haven't started drinking yet there's no way you're getting seconds.

Anyhow, now that it's reasonably trimmed I cut off a big hunk of the top for the Chateaubriand that I'll freeze and make at a later date

Finish the trimming on this 3lb or so hunk

and then wrap it first in plastic wrap and then tinfoil for the journey to the freezer

Now back to finishing the liposuction on the filet section

and then slice it into filets roughly 1 1/2" thick

As you can see there's, what, 10 filets? Not bad. So 2 packs of 4 each go into the freezer

and two go on a plate and into the fridge for my dinner.

And now that I've put away the very sharp knife it's time for me to pop open the first bottle

of many

and relax for a few hours before I start cooking.

Cheers!

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 05:57 PM | Comments (23)

February 19, 2007

So I Baked A King Cake Today

...and somehow I ended up with the Easter Anus™

I'm a little hesitant to dive right in...

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 03:27 PM | Comments (20)

February 03, 2007

Lamb Update: Soup's On!

"Can I have some please?"

No.

But I can.

Quite tasty. Next time I will cube the spudlies and add a dash or two of worchestershire, I think, just to give it a touch more body.

But over all very yum.

Now I beg your indulgence as I go back for another bowl!

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 08:44 PM | Comments (7)

Insta On The Lamb

Reading about Insta's Lamb Stew got me hungry and made me want to try his recipe. It's 23º degrees outside and this stew sounds yum. More importantly, it gives me a chance to indulge in New Kitchen Pørn!

C'mere, Fluffy...

So, following his rather spartan recipe (which I like, btw, as it allows for lots of artistic interpretation) and conveniently having several pounds of boneless leg of lamb in the freezer I defrosted Fluffy and cubed her and got a little browning action going on

I rinsed the spudlettes in the new deep stainless steel sink

Mmmm, Fluffy sauteé

Hey! Where'd this come from? Well, can't let it go to waste

a leetle on-yon

Some browned, salted, peppered and paprikaed (?) Fluffy

My, what a handsome pair standing so proudly on that living Gaia flesh!

Into the Crockpot of Death rode the 700...
(I added some fresh sage in lieu of fresh thyme because, well, I had some)

Gratuitous Kitchen Pørn shot of the tiled backsplash! and Guinness...and wine...

Oh Guinness! How can I pour thee into something other than me?

Must...

Be...

Strong!

That was one of the hardest things I've ever done. My sole consolation is that those two cans were part of a four-pack.

Fluffy, I hardly know ya' now!

And now we get to wait for 8 hours!

The house is starting to smell yum already!

Now where are those other two Guinnae...

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 04:14 PM | Comments (30)

January 31, 2007

BAStard !!

The Pequannock school board has nothing on THIS corporate tool.

Dear Wine Lovers of Florida,
Once again, legal, direct-to-consumer wine shipping is being challenged in Florida.

Senator Burt L. Saunders has sponsored Senate Bill 126, which if passed, will impose a complete ban on winery-to-consumer shipments from any winery or wine company producing more than 250,000 gallons, or about 100,000 cases.

The cap applies to a wine company’s aggregate production total, and because some wine companies own several wineries, the bill will remove your ability to purchase wines directly from any of these individual wineries. Many wineries will be affected, and therefore, many wine lovers will be removed from mailing lists, wine clubs, etc.

ACTION: Please personalize and fax the sample letter below to Senator Burt L. Saunders. District Office Fax (239) 417-6223

And fax a copy to Jeremy Benson, Free the Grapes! at fax (707) 254-0433.

If this sounds familiar, it is because Senator Saunders sponsored SB144 in 2006, which also included a production cap. Fortunately, that bill died in committee.

We don’t want you to be suddenly cut-off from your favorite wineries, but we’ll need your help. So please write the Senator today and forward this email to your wine loving friends!

Free the Grapes!

Jeremy Benson
Executive Director
(707) 254-1107

Sample letter in extended section.

Sample Message to Personalize to Senator Saunders

Senator Burt Saunders
District Office
3301 Tamiami Trail
Suite 304
Naples, Florida 34112
Fax (239) 417-6223

Dear Senator Saunders,
As an adult voter of Florida, I strongly urge you to remove the production cap provision in Senate Bill 126.

A cap that bans winery-to-consumer shipments from wineries that produce more than 250,000 gallons is arbitrary, discriminatory, and will likely be challenged in court. Three states (Arizona, Kentucky and Massachusetts) have passed similar laws, and all three are being challenged in court. While these cases wind their way slowly, expensively through the court system, wine lovers in those states are prevented from purchasing wines directly. The effect is a complete shipping ban.

Let’s not let that happen in Florida. I believe that wine lovers like me should be able to purchase directly from any winery, regardless of size. Please don’t put a cap on consumer choice!

Please let me know if you will remove the cap, and if not, provide a legitimate reason for discriminating against a winery based on how many gallons it produces.

Sincerely,
Your Name
Street Address
City, FLORIDA Zip Code

Posted by tree hugging sister at 05:08 PM | Comments (1)

January 22, 2007

The 'Thigh Master' Has NOTHING

...on this sixpack.

Europeans Rushing To Bulgaria To Buy "Breast-Boosting Beer"

European men are rushing to Bulgaria to buy Boza beer, which is said to boost women's breasts, after Bulgaria's accession to the EU abolished prohibitive customs duties on the drink.

The Bulgarian Boza beer, which is made from fermented wheat flour and yeast, has become popular among bar owners, shopkeepers and shoppers across Europe. The beverage is popular among men as gifts for their wives and girlfriends to benefit from its reported ability to make women's breast grow bigger.

One buyer from Romania said he travelled to Danube so he could buy the famous beer in the Bulgarian town of Rousse, according to Ananova news reports.

Ananova reported he said, "I've bought a case for my wife to try out. I really hope I see an improvement."

A Swill salute to That 1 Guy for pointing out yet another cogent reason to support free trade.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 11:30 AM | Comments (4)

December 28, 2006

A Chocolate Detective

...sinks his teeth into a pricey little morsel and asks himself "What's NoKa worth?"

Four years ago, while standing on a mountaintop in Switzerland, a pair of Canadian accountants, Katrina Merrem and Noah Houghton, decided to leave the ledgers behind and enter the world of gourmet chocolate. Two years later, they founded Noka Chocolate in Plano, Texas. On to the chocolate...

...I'll admit that the first time I visited Noka's web site two years ago, I experienced sticker shock, even though I was no stranger to pricey gourmet chocolates. I figured I'd let some time pass, see if they survived, and maybe take a closer look at the company and its product later.

The time has come for that closer look.

In the coming days, we'll search for the answer to one simple question: Are Noka's chocolates worth the money?

You, dear Swillers, might ask "So, what's 'pricey' mean?" (We've all drooled over the 'pricey' Scharfenberger bar, right?) THESE prices blow that little bar clean out of the cocoa butter tub.

Vintages Collection (i.e., molded tablets) -- Encore Box (i.e., cardboard).
96 piece -- approximately $309 per pound
48 piece -- approximately $444 per pound
24 piece -- approximately $533 per pound
12 piece -- approximately $693 per pound
4 piece -- approximately $853 per pound

Vintages Collection (i.e., molded tablets) -- Signature Box (i.e., stainless steel).
96 piece -- approximately $464 per pound
48 piece -- approximately $795 per pound
24 piece -- approximately $1,146 per pound
12 piece -- approximately $1,760 per pound
4 piece -- approximately $2,080 per pound

Grand Cru Collection (i.e., truffles) -- Encore Box (i.e., cardboard).
24 piece -- approximately $432 per pound
16 piece -- approximately $528 per pound
8 piece -- approximately $674 per pound
2 piece -- approximately $666 per pound

Grand Cru Collection (i.e., truffles) -- Signature Box (i.e., stainless steel).
16 piece -- approximately $908 per pound
8 piece -- approximately $1,339 per pound
2 piece -- approximately $1,730 per pound

Let's compare that with the products of some commonly known chocolatiers. Godiva chocolates range from about $30 to $65 per pound. Joseph Schmidt chocolates range from around $30 to $55 per pound. Fran's chocolates cost around $55 to $70 per pound. Michael Recchiuti's chocolates run from $58 to $85 per pound. And La Maison du Chocolat ranges from about $65 to $85 per pound.

Noka's pricing soars over that of most gourmet chocolatiers by a factor of five, ten, even twenty times or more.

...Who would guess that the world's most expensive chocolates (several times over) are made in a tiny kitchen shoehorned between a pair of hair salons in a half-abandoned strip mall in Plano, Texas?

WARNING: This report is on a HUGELY cranky server, but it has ten pages of foodie investigation that is absolutely riveting. These people have found the equivalent of the 75% cocoa solids pet rock, selling it to high ends like Dean & DeLuca* and Neiman Marcus.

(*Well, not to Dean & DeLuca anymore, apparently.)

Maybe life really is like a box of chocolates.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 01:56 PM | Comments (11)

December 22, 2006

Praise Gaia! We Will Eat At Home On Christmas!

and drink!

Still have to hook up some things, but Claude is happy

(A wine rack and refrigerator will go in those cubbies)

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 08:05 AM | Comments (8)

December 05, 2006

Terrible News From Australia

First Al Gore visits and lectures them, and now this

In the late 1800s the deadly aphid phylloxera devastated much of the Victorian wine industry, but it mercifully spared the Yarra Valley. Yesterday, it finally hit its mark.

The insect was found last Friday and officially identified yesterday by officials from the Department of Primary Industry in a small section of eight-year-old merlot vines in the 32-hectare Beavis Vineyard, at Coldstream. The vines had been suffering from poor vigour.

Please buy lots of Concord rootstock, Aussie Winemakers, and eliminate this before it's too late.

I need my shiraz.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 06:25 PM

December 01, 2006

Dear

...God.

THERE it is, sitting behind the bar of the East Village's Double Down Saloon - an unlabeled vodka bottle in which three bloated strips of bacon stand at attention looking like a med-school project gone awry. Ladies and gentlemen, introducing a binge too far, the final olive-covered straw, the drink that leaves us shaken, anger stirred: the Bacon Martini.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 11:31 AM | Comments (17)

November 15, 2006

Pour Mon Frère Le Bingster et Mlle. Suzette

Voilà! L'abomination avec la soupe dans le bidon.

Thanksgiving Dressing

2 boxes Jiffy corn muffin mix

6 to 7 slices stale white bread

2 (15-ounce) cans chicken broth

1 (10 3/4-ounce) can cream of chicken soup

1 medium onion

2 stalks celery, minced

1 stick butter, melted

3 eggs

Salt and pepper

Milk

Bake cornbread following package directions using buttermilk. Cool.

In a large bowl, crumble white bread and cornbread.

Microwave broth and soup until hot, then add to bread. Add onion, celery, butter, eggs, salt and pepper. Mix well. Add milk to make soupy consistency.

Pour dressing into greased 9-inch-by-13-inch baking pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 to 45 minutes, or until golden brown and firm in center.

Save some broth to add in pan to keep moist during baking.

Le yums.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 11:01 AM | Comments (1)

October 15, 2006

That First, Cool Fall Afternoon

...with football on the telly and leaves skittering across the yard triggers an instinctive reaction.

"Must Bake COOkies"

So I did. Herewith:

Butterscotch Chippy Oatmeal COOkies

...à la ths.
In the bowl ~

1 C butter (I use Land o' Lakes baking/spreadable butter w/ canola ~ better cholesterol wise)
1/4C granulated sugar
3/4C dark brown sugar, packed
1- 3 oz. box instant butterscotch pudding

In the sifter:
1 1/4 C flour
1 t baking soda

The rest:
2 eggs ( in a further smack at cholesterol, I've been using Eggbeaters)
3C oatmeal (I use Old Fashioned, not quick)
12 oz. bag Semi Sweet chips
5 oz. (half a bag) Butterscotch chips

Oven to 375° Makes 36 BIG ol' COOkies.

Cream sugars, pudding and butter until smooth and creamy, then beat in eggs until smooth.
Beat in flour/baking soda, then lower the mixer speed and work oatmeal in one cup at a time.
(Make sure you stop to scrape bowl well after each step.)

Then work in chips and scrape, scrape, scrape so they're evenly through.
Pop bowl in fridge while you do a quick clean-up.
As you can tell...

...we pour a healthy sized cookie in this house. More oatmeal for your heart that way. These are tablespoons we're working with and I start checking cookies this size at 12 minutes.
Because of the pudding they are going to look browner than, say, a chocolate chip as they bake.
(These average about 15 minutes or so and come out a toffee color.) Let them rest at least a minute or so on the cookie sheet, then move off to the cooling rack.

Then you'll need to keep a SHARP eye out for...

COOkie Pirates.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 05:05 PM | Comments (5)

August 30, 2006

A Feast For A Grim Milestone™

Well, ok, it's probably not much of a feast, but no matter! Tonight we join hands with our Swilling friend Tim Blair and celebrate 1000 Days of Plastic Turkey lore! Tim has honored the occasion with a a Turkey Roll of Fame for those who have done much to promote this tale; I took it upon myself to come up with ways to actually cook plastic turkeys, and serve them to my familly.

But first, what to drink? I was wandering around the liquor store the other day when I saw this:

My friends, you must all buy this wine. A lot of it. allow me to quote the label:

Patriot Red, Australian Red Wine

A toast to the Patriots of America and Australia

United in the pursuit of Freedom, Liberty and Justice

We raise our glass to you!

Blended by Simon Gilbert Wines, Apple Tree Flat, Mudgee, Australia. It only cost $9 and it was quite tasty. Buy this wine! Don't you question my patriotism; Drink it!

Now, on to the food! For the main course, I thought I'd try some grilled plastic Turkey with olives, pineapple and red pepper strips:

Update: Dessert is ready!

Dang, it's getting hot out here:

Hmm, I don't like my plastic Turkey medium rare, so we better let it go a little while longer

Well, I'll just have some more wine and chat with my beloved Bride in the kitchen. Oh shit! Look at the time! Better go check on dinner...

Oops...

Good thing my Gobbler Gulag™ hasn't been raided yet by those damn Plastic Edible Turkey Advocates!

Yo quiero Taco Plastico!

Mmmmm, tasty!

Now what to have for dessert...

Yum-yum!

Plastic turkey jello!

Boy! That hits the spot!

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 09:00 PM | Comments (13)

August 18, 2006

Kreme Takes a Whipping

Nothing Left but the Hole in the Middle Krispy Kreme's first West Coast outlet sparked fanfare and big sales. Patrons moved on, and now so has the store.

Fans and employees of Krispy Kreme went from glazed to confused Thursday morning as the chain's La Habra store — the first on the West Coast — pulled down its signs, packed up its doughnut mix and shut its doors for good.

From opening day in January 1999, the workers toiling inside the tidy white, green and red building fueled a feeding frenzy to the tune of 20 million doughnuts and $9 million in sales in the first year.

...Whatever the reasons, James Glass, an analyst with CIBC World Markets in Boston, put it bluntly: "People just won't line up for doughnuts forever and ever."

Can't say I'm surprised. "Southern tradition" or not, I've never much cared for Krispy Kremes, bein' a TO THE DEATH "Dunkin Donuts Chocolate Creme-Filled" kinda girl.

Even shuttering every Dunkin' Donut for 65 miles five years ago didn't drive me to Krispy Kreme desperation donut dementia. Now that's loyalty.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 01:52 PM | Comments (13)

August 06, 2006

Hot Time, Summer

...in the swamp. Nothing like one of...

major dad's WORLD FAMOUS CHEESEBURGERS

...with your choice of condiments and cheese (He's Swiss ~ GACK! ~ I'm American), topped off with some nummy avocado slices, along with sides of salad with homemade vinaigrette and wagon wheels with pesto made from homegrown herbs. Top that off with a lovely chilled glass of rosé* and voilá! You don't mind the heat and humidity as much.

*That would be a 2005 Benessere Rosato di Sangiovese, from Napa. Lip schmackin'!

I feel better already. Ten minutes to "Deadwood".

Posted by tree hugging sister at 08:53 PM | Comments (8)

August 04, 2006

No More Standing At The Bar?

Ah, the Alcohol Nazis are going too far now!

IT SHOULD be patently obvious. The principal drawback to vertical drinking is the danger of vertical falling over into horizontal befuddlement.

Police in Preston, Lancashire, think it is not as simple as that. Vertical drinking, they believe, is one of the country’s main causes of public disorder and would like to see it banned in the city’s pubs.

Vertical drinking is a new term for what used to be called standing at the bar, long regarded as the natural refuelling posture. Sixteen pints of lager slip into the tanks much more easily when the gullet is erect rather than kinked by the body being squeezed into a chair like a half-shut penknife. Drinking while standing in a like-minded group, police argue, is a contributor to booze-fuelled violence.

"Vertical Drinking." I thought that meant having bottles of the '61, '66, '82 and '86 Latour with the same meal? And who would have ever suspected that other people standing at a bar also wanted to drink! My God, the insights in the British Press!

*

It also seems the anti-smoking folks are making great strides in England, as well. Now I will be the first to admit that I love the fact that bars in NJ and NY are smoke-free now, because I don't smoke and I hated smelling like stale smoke when I got home (I really could care less about the whole "secondhand smoke" crap), not that I care if people smoke or not. Anyhow, like I said it looks like these sorts of laws are making headway over there, which leads to a glorious throwaway line like this that you would never ever see in an American paper:

The latest attempt to infringe libertarian drinkers’ rights will be compounded next year when England imposes a no-smoking rule in pubs, forcing drinkers on to the pavement for a fag. The opportunities for violence could be immense.

You're not kidding they could be immense!

Hehehe.

*to whoever did the snockered Paddington: we thank you.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 02:12 PM | Comments (8)

July 24, 2006

The Carnival of the Recipes

...is up!

Posted by tree hugging sister at 04:39 PM

July 13, 2006

How To Make A Divine Breakfast

Say you've got the Virgin Mary Toast and you want a complete breakfast. What to do? Well, now you can top it off with a Fried Allah Egg:

ALMATY (Reuters) - A chicken in a Kazakh village has laid an egg with the word "Allah" inscribed on its shell, state media reported Thursday.

"Our mosque confirmed that it says 'Allah' in Arabic," Bites Amantayeva, a farmer from the village of Stepnoi in eastern Kazakhstan, told state news agency Kazinform.

"We'll keep this egg and we don't think it'll go bad."

I'd trust a farmer named "Bites Aman", wouldn't you?

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 10:10 AM | Comments (2)

June 28, 2006

A Hearty Swill Salute...

To the English Swillers:

ENGLAND's massive army of World Cup fans is drinking Germany dry, it emerged yesterday.

Breweries warned beer could run out before the final because of huge demand from our supporters.

In Nuremberg, organisers revealed 70,000 England fans who flooded the city drank 1.2MILLION pints of beer - an average of 17 pints each.

Astonished bar keeper Herrmann Murr said: "Never have I seen so many drink so much in such little time."

His bar at a fans' tent in the city ran out after they drained all 32 of his 50-litre (11 gallon) barrels.

Herr Murr calculated Britons were shifting beer at a staggering rate of 200 pints per minute.

City official Peter Murrmann said: "The English proved themselves world champs. They practically drank us dry."

Gentlemen, you have done us proud.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 01:35 PM | Comments (10)

For Bingley and Suzette

It's been mighty quiet on the canned soup front, but I knew it couldn't last. And voilá! In today's paper, a gift from the Campbell Gods.

Tex-Mex Rice and Chicken

1 (48 ounce) bag quick frozen chicken breasts

6 cups cooked Minute rice

4 cups shredded Velveeta cheese

2 (10 ounce) cans RoTel with chili peppers

1 (10 3/4 ounce) can cream of celery soup

Boil chicken. Cut into bite size pieces. Prepare rice. In a bowl combine, chicken, cheese, RoTel and soup to the rice. Pour into a 9-inch-by-13-inch casserole dish. Bake at 350 about 25 minutes or until warm.

Well, yum. (Although I hadn't realized celery was a big part of TexMex. You learn something new and delicious every day.)

Posted by tree hugging sister at 12:13 PM | Comments (6)

June 17, 2006

My Dinner With Genos

Well, ok, it was lunch actually, but I'm a sucker for a cheap literary reference. Anywho, as I said below I was going to drive to Philly today just to have lunch at Genos. I'm sure you've seen his story at Michelle Malkin's; I did, and as soon as I read it I decided to make the trip. Over beers on Tuesday I floated the idea to Nightfly, and as he was game we met this morning and drove to Philly with his beloved and my daughter in tow.

Thanks to the directions Michelle had linked to it was very easy to find, and when we got there at 12 or so man, the place was mobbed. There was no where to park nearby so I drove around a bit and finally found a spot after we doubled back a block over. It turns out we doubled back a tad too much, because once we walking back on 9th Street we were heading the wrong way. In a moment of Sensitive 90s Guy Lucidity™ I asked a shriveled but dapper looking Italian fellow which way Geno's was, and as he was about to answer another much younger Italian gent with (I kid you not) a bottle of Chianti in each hand said "It's down this way...but don't forget to speak English!" And with that he laughed and went on his way. Thusly encouraged, we continued on ours.

And there, glistening in the distance like the spires of Tangerine City, home of the Whiz, we saw...

I shall not deny that our pulse quickened as we approached, mainly because we were starving, but also in part to the buzz about the place. As I said before, it was packed; the line to the window stretched halfway down the block. Parked across the street was the official Geno's Mobile

And then it struck me. Right in front of me was the real reason why the 'concerned' folks in Philly are upset with Geno's. It really has nothing to do with the "Speak English When You Order Sign", though I'm sure they see that as another proof of the owner's dementia. No, my friends, the real reason Geno's is in trouble with the City of Brotherly Love is right there on his Hummer...

The Free Mumia crowd has declared war (well, actually they haven't come out and declared it, as that would require courage), as Officer Faulkner's picture is everywhere you look at Geno's,

as are window case after window case that are filled with police badges from around the country and around the world, from Anoka County, Minnesota to Australia.

Due to the wide-spread reporting on this story, Geno's has also gotten many letters of support from around the country, and they've posted some of the funnier ones:

But the point of the trip, gentle reader, in addition to giving morale and financial support to a great American institution, was this:

That, my friends, is a cheesesteak with wiz, a birch beer and some cheese fries. "Cheese" in this instance being "Cheese Whiz." And Ho Nelly was it delicious.

There are some folks who like to end their meal with a sweet treat, and there are some folks who prefer an espresso with the creamiest of heads. But for me nothing beats the vision, much like the pot o'gold that awaits every Irsihman at the end of a rainbow, the vision of the whiz at the bottom of the cup of fries

Heaven, my dear friends.

Heaven.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 03:41 PM | Comments (16)

June 03, 2006

Oh, Right ~ "Allergies"

My dying a$$. Peanuts cost more than pretzels. Hello, I can do the math.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 11:56 PM | Comments (2)

May 30, 2006

Sacre Bleu!! Zees French Wine

...she eez Swill! (As opposed to "swell", which is JUST what the American wines turned out to be.)

Wine competition pits France v US
The US has emerged victorious in a blind tasting by experts in London and California pitting US and French wine against each other.

...Nine judges there sampled ten unlabelled glasses of decades-old wines.

The combined scores from both panels gave victory to wines from California's Napa Valley. A 1971 Ridge Monte Bello Cabernet from Napa received the highest praise.

"I'm very impressed," said Christian Vanneque, a French judge who was at the original tasting in 1976.

"I don't know if I will be able to go back to France," he added. "After a second time, they will kill me."

A Swill Salute (of something American and yummy) to Professor Bainbridge and Radio Blogger for bringing this to our attention.
UPDATE: Well, they can always use the corked bottles for nightlights.

The Champagne vineyards of France could face a nuclear disaster, according to Greenpeace which on Tuesday said radioactive underground water had been found just 10 kms from the country's most prestigious wine producing region.

... The report, by Acro, a private laboratory specialising in radioactivity analysis, said significant levels of tritium, radioacive hydrogen, had leaked into the environment. Samples of underground water taken near the Normandy site at La Hague last week showed levels some 90 times higher than European safety limits.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 07:33 PM | Comments (8)

May 11, 2006

This Seems an Odd Rule to Me

People buying wine or whiskey will not face the same requirement. Beer sales are traditionally regulated locally in Tennessee, while liquor sales are regulated by the state. Beer cannot be sold in the same stores that sell wine and liquor.

It's usually wine/beer "sold here". With liquor, it's stricter.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 09:03 AM | Comments (7)

May 04, 2006

By God

...I honestly didn't know!

Honoring the 200th Birthday of the Cocktail

I could have been pimping my 'tinis for the past year, but no.
A day late, several dollars short and still a big break bridesmaid.
Oh well. Raise a glass anyway.
I wonder if Bingley has room in that barrel...

Posted by tree hugging sister at 11:18 PM | Comments (5)

April 24, 2006

Scotch

...that idea.

An Indian court has ruled that Indian whiskey manufacturers cannot use the words "Scot" or "Scotch" to describe their products, in compliance with World Trade Organization rules, a newspaper reported Monday.

The words "Scot" or "Scotch" identify whiskey produced in Scotland, and no Indian manufacturer can use it to promote or market its product, the Deccan Chronicle newspaper quoted Judge Madan B. Lokur of the Delhi High Court as saying.

...The judgment was given on a lawsuit filed by the Scotch Whisky Association of the United Kingdom seeking to restrain Golden Bottling Limited, an Indian whiskey manufacturer, from using the name "Red Scot" to sell its whiskey.

Indian SCOTCH?! What's next ~ "Gunga Gin"?

Posted by tree hugging sister at 10:05 AM | Comments (17)

April 12, 2006

BASTARDS!

Dear Wine Lovers of Florida,
Your newly-won ability to purchase wines from any winery may be rescinded.

House Bill 247 and Senate Bill 144 both include a shipping ban on wineries that produce 250,000 gallons or more. The wholesaler lobby has snuck the "cap" provision into these two bills, which is discriminatory and works against consumer choice and fair trade.

If these bills pass, you will be cut-off from your favorite wineries!

We say, “Don’t Cap My Wine!” We support Senator Dockery’s bill, Senate Bill 282, which tracks the model direct shipping bill working well for consumers, wineries and regulators in many other states. But we need to broaden our communications to all Florida legislators to support SB 282 and oppose HB247 and SB 144.

Free the Grapes has thoughtfully provided a link to personalize a message to your State Representative, which I will be taking advantage of shortly. (Bless their little purple hearts for doing such a grape job!) I don't order much wine personally, but Bingley, when the mood strikes him, is a hugely generous botello de vino sender and I used to have to drive over to Alabammy to pick the bottles up. And that's just wrong, dammit.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 09:47 AM | Comments (2)

April 11, 2006

Barkeep, Bring Me Another

And, yes, put it on Mr. McCabe's tab; he said it was fine:

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) -- As if custom-made hats, premium box seats and limo rides weren't enough, the Kentucky Derby will now feature the $1,000 mint julep.

Sip this drink slowly.

The sweet cocktail will be made with one of the state's finest bourbons and served in a gold-plated cup with a silver straw to the first 50 people willing to put down the cash at the May 6 race.

Mint from Morocco, ice from the Arctic Circle and sugar from the South Pacific will put this mint julep in a class of its own, the distillery selling the drink said.

Now if only the stirrers had been used to club seals it would be perfect.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 11:26 AM | Comments (19)

April 09, 2006

This Won't Affect Bingley at All

...but here at Casa de Major Dad? We're bummed.

Federal regulators voted to impose severe restrictions on salmon fishing off the coasts of Oregon and Northern California to protect dwindling populations in the Klamath River.

The Pacific Fishery Management Council decided Thursday to close most of the 700 miles of coastline to commercial salmon fishing for much of May, June and July, the most productive months of the season, which runs from April-October. Federal fishery officials said the closures were the broadest ever imposed on the West Coast salmon fishery.

“This is going to be a horrible year,” said Zeke Grader, executive director of the Pacific Coast Federation of Fishermen's Association. “It's not a total closure, but it's the closest thing to it.”

It's been rough out there for the fishies.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 11:44 AM | Comments (1)

April 08, 2006

Well...

“There’s never been a time when the bourbon was as good as it is today,” says Bill Samuels.

...okay!

Posted by tree hugging sister at 10:55 PM | Comments (3)

April 04, 2006

Glad to Be Able to Help

...even a little.

California wine sales hit another high
Easing of rules on wine shipments seen boosting market

Does my heart good.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 01:28 PM

April 03, 2006

"Slither" Might Well Be Worth Seeing

...if just for this reason alone.

...The first-time director, who wrote the screenplay for the 2004 remake “Dawn of the Dead,” also has assembled a far finer cast than the genre typically presents, led by Nathan Fillion of the cult TV series “Firefly” and its big-screen spinoff “Serenity.”

As Bill Pardy, the police chief in a hillbilly town overrun by killer slugs and flesh-munching zombies, Fillion expands on the droll flair he mastered as skipper of the rickety spaceship Serenity.

“Slither” also lets Fillion cut loose and get really goofy, all the while maintaining his boyish rogue’s charm. This guy deserves to be a major star.

Agree whole heartedly. The movie review's pretty darn good, too. I don't know that I could get over my inherent squeamishness about such things to watch it though, droll or not.

By the by, Major Dad and I just finished watching the "Firefly" boxed set ~ Ebola had a charitable moment and lent it to us ~ and we are completely hooked. It was dynamite viewing. We're also pissed that it was so poorly marketed when it was on. Who had any idea a) what it was about and b) what a treasure it was ?

Posted by tree hugging sister at 08:07 AM | Comments (6)

March 20, 2006

Free the Grapes Update

Free the Grapes.org

FLORIDA BILLS INTRODUCED
Floridians are now able to receive wine shipments based on a court order and a subsequent determination by state regulators. But three bills are in the legislature, which began its 3-month session last week. The bills, in general, intend to replace the existing structure with additional provisions for tax collection, reporting, etc. The wine industry is supporting Senate Bill 282 (Dockery) which tracks the model direct shipping bill working successfully in many other states.

Florida consumers will hear from us again soon.

Other state updates in the extended post.

ILLINOIS HOUSE CONSIDERING PERMIT BILL Senate Bill 2180 passed the Senate and is being taken up in the House. Senate Bill 2180 was significantly modified from its original version, which was strongly supported by the Associated Beer Distributors. The original version limited direct shipping to in-state and out-of-state wineries producing less than 100,000 gallons, included a low case limit, and required consumers to visit a winery before direct purchases could be made. SB2180 no longer includes these provisions and more closely follows the provisions of the model direct shipping bill (but currently does not include retailers). House Bill 4350 has been amended and contains the same language as SB 2180, and both are in the House Rules Committee.

INDIANA SESSION ENDS MARCH 14 WITH POOR BILL In the closing two days of its 2006 session, the Indiana legislature passed House Bill 1016, which is on its way to the Governor. The bill prevents out-of-state wineries with an Indiana wholesaler, or any winery selling 500,000 gallons in the state, from direct shipping to Indiana consumers. For all other wineries, the bill allows them to ship up to 3,000 cases to the state per year, and no more than 24 cases to one individual. The penalties imposed on the winery that ships the 25th case are not defined. Therefore, because wineries have no means of determining how many total cases have been shipped by all wineries to an individual consumer, the bill will continue to prevent wineries from participating and consumers from choice in wine.

ARIZONA BILLS ACTIVE, BUT LIMIT CHOICE The two bills that are active in Arizona are opposed because they place an arbitrary cap on who can ship. The bills prohibit all wineries producing more than 50,000 gallons (about 20,000 cases) from shipping wine to Arizona consumers unless the wine is purchased while the consumer is at the winery. The bills are protectionist, unfairly discriminatory and limit the choices available to Arizona consumers. HB 2500 is in the Committee of the Whole, which in Arizona means the entire House. The bill will be debated there prior to a third reading vote. Senate Bill 1276 passed the Senate and is waiting for Committee assignment in the House.

KANSAS FAUX SHIPPING BILL MOVES TO HOUSE Senate Bill 370 passed the Senate and is in the House. The bill includes anti-consumer, poison pill requirements that will continue to make the state off limits for wineries. Provisions include a retailer pass-through requirement, shipment only of wines not in distribution, onerous reporting, and vintner background checks. ACTION: Kansas wine lovers should visit the following website link and personalize a message to state legislators: http://www.capwiz.com/freegrapes/issues/alert/?alertid=115967

MAINE DIRECT SHIPPING BILL STALLS IN COMMITTEE LD 1900, which tracked the model direct shipping bill, was voted out of the Joint Standing Committee on Legal and Veterans Affairs by a minority of members supporting an amended version of the bill. The bill, as amended, next heads to the House for debate. The February 13 public hearing brought out wineries and consumers (wearing “Free the Grapes!” T-shirts and hats) but their compelling arguments failed to move a majority of the Committee. Thanks for all your support!

MARYLAND MODEL BILL INTRODUCED House Bill 625 tracks the model direct shipping bill, which would allow a winery to purchase a direct shipper’s permit from MD, ship up to two cases per month per consumer, pay sales and excise taxes, etc. The bill is in the House Committee on Economic Matters. ACTION: Maryland wine lovers should visit the following website link and personalize a message to state legislators: http://www.capwiz.com/freegrapes/issues/alert/?alertid=115967

MASSACHUSETTS PASSES UNWORKABLE BILL The state legislature overrode Governor Romney’s veto of legislation passed last session. The net effect is that MA now has a faux shipping bill that will continue to prevent consumers from purchasing wines from out-of-state wineries. The mechanics of the bill have not yet been written and there is no estimate on their availability.

PENNSYLVANIA CONSIDERING OPTIONS Although out-of-state shipments are technically allowed to PA consumers, the mechanics that would allow for such shipments have not been established by the PA Liquor Control Board, and the legislature has yet to act on a specific bill. Wineries are awaiting finalization of these rules prior to shipping. (The common carriers also have not yet approved Pennsylvania for direct-to-consumer shipments.)

As background, on September 30, 2005 the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board issued an Advisory Notice removing in-state wineries’ ability to direct ship to consumers. There was a hearing in October on the topic. Later, a state court granted a stay, allowing in-state wineries to continue shipping in-state. A federal court in Philadelphia then issued a ruling to “level up,” granting shipping privileges to out-of-state wineries pending state legislation.

WASHINGTON GOVERNOR SIGNS PERMIT BILL Governor Gregoire signed a favorable direct-to-consumer shipment bill on March 14, transitioning Washington from a reciprocal state to a permit state. This was done to ensure that shipping privileges can be maintained without any Constitutional challenges. With a wine shipper’s permit, wineries will be able to ship an unlimited amount of wine directly to Washington consumers (an increase from the current two case annual limit). The bill will take effect on or about June 7, 2006.

IDAHO GOVERNOR SIGNS PERMIT BILL Governor Kempthorne signed House Bill 454 on March 13, which transitions Idaho from a reciprocal state to a permit state. With a wine shipper's permit, wineries will be able to ship up to 24 cases annually to Idaho consumers. Wineries must collect and remit sales taxes, pay excise taxes on all wine shipped directly, etc.

ADDITIONAL STATES GRADUATING TO PERMIT BILL Several other states are in the process of replacing “reciprocal” language – which allowed their wineries to ship to other states with similar reciprocal provisions – with the updated model direct shipping bill. This bodes well for consumers since the model bill addresses specific regulatory requirements, was cited by the U.S. Supreme Court, and has a proven track record.

Colorado: House Bill 1120 passed that chamber on February 8, and seeks to introduce model bill provisions including a $50 permit fee, excise tax payments, and the removal of Colorado’s existing on-site purchase requirement, among others. The bill moves to the Senate.

Hawaii: Hawaii wine lovers may have greater choice if either House Bill 1968 or Senate Bill 2109 passes the Legislature. If they become law, HI wine lovers will be able to purchase wines from wineries in all 50 states—rather than just 13—who are licensed to ship directly to HI consumers. Additionally, lobbyists are working to increase the current case limit from three cases annually to a higher number.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 07:32 PM

March 17, 2006

Ummm, Lunch Was Good

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 01:00 PM | Comments (6)

March 14, 2006

A THS Public Service Announcement

I've found an excellent primer for all my wanna-be organic treehuggers. And I know you all wanna be one. If Bingley and Kcruella can turn slowly to the dark side, now you all can too! (It even tells what not to waste your 'organic' dollars on.)

Posted by tree hugging sister at 11:19 AM | Comments (9)

March 01, 2006

First, You Swill a Wee Dram

The first taste affects all the members of the body," a 1695 description of the elixir reads. "Two spoonfuls of this last liquor is a sufficient dose -- if any man should exceed this, it would presently stop his breath, and endanger his life."

...then you say the distillery name three times fast...

Bruichladdich

...before you fall into a coma, whilst the mourners around ye sing...

May the best ye've ever seen
Be the worst ye'll ever see
May a moose ne'er leave yer girnal
Wi' a tear drap in his e'e
May ye aye keep hale an' he'rty
Till ye're auld eneuch tae dee
May ye aye be jist as happy
As we wish ye aye tae be

When we can stand again, we offer the second dram as a Swill salute to our dear friend Beer Brains for alertin' us to the danger.

UPDATE: Holy CRAP!! Maybe we can score some for free, since it's a MacEwan at the helm, praise be ta Jesus!

Variety - Our Spice of Life
Master Distiller Jim McEwan innovatively designs a variety of different Bruichladdich's inspired by our maturing stocks which date back to 1964.

What IS it with this family and alchohol?

Posted by tree hugging sister at 03:38 PM | Comments (8)

February 19, 2006

Danish Dinner II

In comparison to THS's elegant meal below, I managed to make a slight mess of things, mostly because of trying to do too many things at once. This also means that I'm missing a few pictures, as there were times when I was juggling too much to take a pic.

I started off with a nice Raven's Wood 2003 Lodi Zinfandel and the ingredients here

Actually, I didn't use everything here, this is just the danish goodies.

I started off making the Kartoffelgratin ("Potato Gratin" See? Danish is easy!) since I figured I could cook that while working on the other things, plus it would keep for awhile. So I peeled the spudlies, dried them and slice them into thin slices

and then placed them in a bowl and coated them with a mixture of salt, pepper, and nutmeg

I then grated 2 different types of cheese. For the cheese going in with the potatos I used fontina, and for the cheese that would be put on top I used havarti with chives (the recipe calls for emmentaler, but that's swiss, and I was sticking to the theme!)

in a saute pan warm up a few cups of milk and mix an egg into it as well as the fontina. Pour this over the potatos in the bowl and mix well. In a small dish melt 2 Tbs of butter (Lurpak, of course) and put some minced garlic into it. Pour this mixture into the baking dish and smear it all around using a paper towel. Pour the potato/cheese mixture into the dish, and cover with the other grated cheese.

Pop that baby into the oven at 375º for at least an hour. Check wine levels. refill as needed.

Now on to the soup. Ah, the soup. The first issue facing me was what exactly is a 'coffee spoon'? I of all people should know. So I asked my bride. And she said it was the small spoon one uses to stir espresso. Not having one of those, I decided that a small spoon we had from a condiment-serving set would have to suffice. That grave issue being decided, I put the bread crumbs and milk in a sauce pan

and cooked until they got thick, all the while teaching an egg white a lesson it would not soon forget

I then added the (now humble) egg white to the crumbs, along with salt, pepper, nutmeg, butter and ground chicken

and cooked that over medium-low heat until it got fairly thick, stirring and chopping it all the time. Then i made roughly 1 inch meatballs from the mixture.

Tragically, at this point the wine was gone, so I was forced to switch to Plan B

Now it was time to put the beef and chicken broth mixture on the stove and get that a boilin' (with some fresh parsley thrown in)

You can see from the tinfoil on the left that the potatos has already come out, but since they were nuk'ler I knew they'd keep.

Time to open the Spam Ham and get that in the oven!

Ain't that a beaut? I put it in a small baking dish (it's only a pound), scored the top, stuck cloves in and drizzled a sauce made from molasses and mustard powder over the top of it, then poured a Carlsberg over it and put a few bay leaves in for good measure. Into the oven at, oh 400º or so for 30 minutes and it came out looking like this

It's ok to switch to another type of beer if a) the previous one is finished, b) it's handy and c) you still thirst

Meanwhile, back at the soup, it was time to make the dumplings. Mix milk, egg whites, flour, butter over lowish heat until they are smooth. Slowly add in egg yolks, then mace and more parsley until it's nice and thick, and shows off the faux coffee spoon to its best advantage

Put the meatballs into the now boiling stock, and cook them for a few minutes. Then, using the coffee spoon wannabee in a deft manner plop spoonfulls of dumpling batter like the little infidels they are into the boiling meatbally stock pot

(cries for mercy are optional; ignore them in any case)

Cook for 10 minutes or so, then slice the ham, dish out the spuds and serve the soup!

Arrange everything on your finest Danish china, and enjoy a nice warm meal with your beloveds.

The verdict? The canned ham was way too salty, but that's just the nature of that type of beast. The spuds could have used some more flavor; next time I'll either use emmentaler or perhaps crumble bleu cheese on top.

The soup was excellent.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 08:37 PM | Comments (15)

Danish Dinner Photos

Here's Tree Hugging Sister's tasty Danish sweet and sour red cabbage and apples, home made gnocchi in a Danish Blue Cheese sauce, and pawk chawp:

Mine will follow later.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 12:38 PM | Comments (2)

February 18, 2006

It's Danish Food Night!

I've got some potatos in the oven, and I'm about to start making Suzette's soup in a minute, to be followed by Emily's Danish Beer ham!

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 06:58 PM | Comments (2)

February 16, 2006

Support Denmark Dinner Saturday February 18th

I'm calling on everyone to eat only Danish foods for dinner on Saturday, February 18th, to support them in their fight against the Cartoonlic Extremists.

From havarti cheese to butter to hams and, of course, Carlsberg (don't buy Tuborg; it's brewed in Baltimore, for gosh sakesKathy K in comments assures me that I have slandered Tuborg, that it is indeed imported, so buy and drink away, dear friends!) there's enough variety and pork-filled goodness to offend darn near everyone, so eat up!

And we'll post a picture filled round up on Sunday.

ths adds: This can be a help, if you're Danish challenged like our household.

Bingley adds: Here's another great site. I mean, who could possibly resist the charms of Flødegullsch, which has both diced pork and cocktail sausages as ingredients?

Update and Bump: Here are some drink recipes.

Bumpity-bump-bump: Tonight I go cheese shopping. I can havarti wait!

Update: I knew Suzette would come through!

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 04:11 PM | Comments (21)

January 30, 2006

Carnival of the Recipes

...is up!! YUMsah!!

Posted by tree hugging sister at 05:40 PM

January 22, 2006

What I'm Drinking Tonight

Gentlemen, fasten your seat belts. And ladies, make sure the young'ins are safely tucked in bed, 'cos we ain't kidding around no more. Tonight we're drinking the baddest of them all, the manliest of manly whiskies

Laphroaig.

Look ma, no ice!

Ah, where to begin? The full peaty aroma, laced with some deliciously acrid oily bites, leaps out at you when the bottle is opened. The warm golden color as it sits in the glass creates a yearning for that first sip, a deep desperate yearning that can only be quenched by...ah hell, that first sip. Oh, the taste! An amazingly full bodied taste and honeyed mouth feel, that is no where as peaty as the nose would lead you to think. Make no mistake, "Laphroaig" is not gaelic for "subtle", there's a whole bog o'peat here, but it's really not as...overpowering as you fear it might be.

So check your blended Blacks and Reds and Greens and Fuschias at the door; this is whisky.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 06:56 PM | Comments (5)

What I'm Drinking Tonight

Our hero, having not learned his lesson, continues to search for a good Zin under $10. Tonight's contestant comes from California, the 2003 Rock River. Price: $9.99.

It has a very nice, deep purpley-red color, which gives me hope. The first few sips were somewhat disappointing, however, as there was a harsh, acidic finish. However, as it sat and opened up in the glass, after some 20 minutes or so, that went away and was replaced by a much nicer, full soft finish with good fruit. There still was just a touch too much acidity for my taste, but this is a decent wine for $10. Sadly, it seems to be a little low on the alcohol content, as they don't even bother to list it on the bottle (a good Zin should have around 15%). But let it breathe in the glass for a decent amount of time before quaffing!

It will probably rate another bottle or two for further testing here at Netherfield.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 05:34 PM | Comments (6)

January 16, 2006

There's a Terrific Audio Photo Gallery

...that complements the article...

Ice Wine Is Called 'Nectar of the Gods'

...about New York State Ice Wines. (Make sure you click through the link that says "Harvesters of Ice Wine".) I've always wanted to try one, but at that price and with my luck, I'd get the $100 half bottle of petroleum.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 01:06 PM | Comments (1)

January 15, 2006

Last Night's Grub

So to go with the Latour, as I said, I decided to splurgeulate a bit and cook a rib roast. I'd never made one before, but by following Sis' Bingley-proof recipe it turned out trés yum:

For the side dish I decided to try out a recipe from a book that I've gotten a great bunch of steak side dish recipes from (written, oddly enough, by a fellow Virginia grad). The recipe is for Tuscan beans and potatos.

You take about a pound of new potatos, cut them into 1/2" cubes, and get them cooking with 2 tbs each olive oil and butter, and some minced garlic in a large pan (I say 'some' because I love garlic, and use tons. The recipe calls for 2 cloves worth, but I use a lot more. Your mileage may vary). Let 'em cook for 20 minutes or so over medium heat, stirring often until the spuds are brown on all sides

While they're cooking cut 2 oz or so of pancetta into smallish bits. Also chop about 3/4 a cup of red onion and about the same amount of shallots, and put that on the side for the moment.

Oh, and make sure you've got a bottle of wine going.

When the spuds are done transfer them to a cookie sheet that you've covered with a few layers of paper towels to sop up the excess oil. Refill your wine glass if you haven't already (a few times, I trust).

Wipe out the pan with some more paper towels (hey, they're cheap at Costco!) and put 3 tbs olive oil in and crank the heat up to medium high. Plop in the pancetta and cook it until crisp, stirring constantly. Once it gets really going you can turn down the heat a bit.

Don't forget about the wine! Cooking is hard work; you need to keep your strength up.

Once the Pancetta is crisp turn the heat back to medium, or a touch less, and add the onions and shallots. Sauté them until the onions are clear but not yet browned.

Then add back the potatos, 2 cans (rinsed) of canelli beans, 1/2 cup or so of beef broth, and 6 fresh sage leaves that you've ripped into little chunks. Cook for, oh, another 10 minutes or so until it is nicely heated up and mixed. Serve it hot.

With wine, naturally.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 04:15 PM | Comments (3)

January 14, 2006

What I'm Drinking Tonight

Vintage-wise, I've lived a pretty charmed life. I graduated HS in 1982, took my University degree in 1986, and I got married in 1989. Those are simply the 3 finest wine years of the past century. Sadly, my parents lacked the knowledge at the time to properly commemorate (oh fine, I split the infinitive: "commemorate properly". And to boldly go where no man has...) the first two events with a case or two of delightful treats, and I sadly lacked the depth-of-pocket to properly attend to the later event. But I have managed over the years to scrape and scrabble out a few bottles of my favorite chateau. Unfortunately from a wine standpoint, my daughter was born in 1993, which was an awful year everywhere. I don't think she had anything to do with it.

Anyhow, what started me thinking along these lines was an article in Friday's Wall Street Journal, where the folks who review the wine talked about coming across the bottle of 1989 Chateau Latour in their cellar and wondering "is it time?" I must confess the exact same thought occured to me over Christmas. I have a few bottles of Latour, and they've been with us for many years, from apartment to apartment to rented house to owned house, kept under the best conditions I could manage but conditions far from ideal, and I thought "should I...should I?"...and I didn't. I haven't. I couldn't. It's a strange love affair that we have with those special bottles. We remember where we bought them, how we've cared for them. We guard them like precious children, waiting for that special moment to open and enjoy them. Is this particular moment special enough? Do you know how much this bottle is worth! When will they be 'perfect'? When is the right time? When it's opened, it's gone forever. There's a finality there that stays the hand. Oh, the torments we put ourselves through! And there have been times when I waited too long, when years of excited expectation are lost in a powdered cork, in a flat, dead wine, in a sour vinagrette.

So the article made me think. By gum, I'm opening one tonight.

It's close enough to my birthday, so that can be the reason. But the real reason is I love life. I love my wife. And I love wine. What the heck other reason do I need?

So I bought a big honking rib roast. I'm making a nice sage-accented side of new potatos and canelli beans. We'll have a salad with a bleu-cheese vinagrette dressing.

And we'll open this

I'll let you know how it goes.

Update and bump below the fold

Well, I am quite pleased. When I first tasted it it had a sourish smell, but as it opened up during dinner it became quite nice. It still had a good deep ruby color, with no trace of the brick-red sign of over-the-hill-ness around the edges, and very smooth tannins with still some lovely fruit. Very impressive for a 20 year old wine that has been schlumped from closet to closet! Chateau Latour simply rocks.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 10:15 PM | Comments (11)

Speaking of Your Eating Pleasure

~ an on going theme as we've covered cannibals, zinful types, green hams and fine wines this week ~ the Carnival of the Recipes is up at The Common Room. Yums!!

Posted by tree hugging sister at 06:25 PM

What I Drank Last Night

I love Zins. I adore Zins. So I'm always on the lookout for new Zins to try, especially in the $13 or so-ish price range. Sure, some of us can plunk down 30 clams with out blinking an eye, and I certainly have a few muy caro bottles, but for, say we say, every day drinking that simply ain't an option. This is why I'm so fond of aussie Shiraz, where you get great big jammy wines for under $20 pretty consistantly.

Anyhow, I've been trolling the Zin Bin at the Evil Clown looking to see what jewels I could discover, and I came across this Clos du Bois Zin and I thought I'd give it a try. It was $12.99.

Well, if you are a fan of big Zins, this isn't for you. It's frankly one of the most un-Zin like Zins I've ever had. It is a soft, thinnish sort of wine that frankly tastes like a merlot, albeit a pretty decent one. With Zins I want/like big gobs of jam, a fair bit of spice and cedar, and by gum darn near 15% alcohol. This falls short on all accounts. Don't get me wrong, it is a pleasant-drinking enough wine...but it's not a Zin with a capital "Z".

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 03:29 PM | Comments (5)

January 13, 2006

An Ice COLD Swill Salute

...to Westerville, Ohio!!

The central Ohio city of Westerville, once known as the "dry capital of the world," is dry no more.

A pizza parlor on Thursday became the first establishment in Westerville's uptown business district to legally serve a beer since 1875.

I'll take a slice and a cold one, please.

Oh, I see Miss Emily's celebrating too!

Posted by tree hugging sister at 10:26 PM

Nummies!

We've had this. We're looking forward to more.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 03:07 PM | Comments (9)

January 06, 2006

What's Not to Love?

...a Friday night visit to either reveals a culture that revolves around drinking and greasy food.

And Baltimore's still the fittest city in the country. Rock ON!

Posted by tree hugging sister at 11:34 AM | Comments (4)

January 04, 2006

Beans, Beans, Are Good for Your

...grilled lamb, actually.

One of our favorite side dishes. Starts with a 15-16 oz can each* of Great Northern and Navy Beans, rinsed and drained.

1/2 med. onion, diced
3 cloves of garlic, diced
1/2 t chopped fresh rosemary
1 t dried thyme, divided
1 T fresh parsely, chopped
extra virgin olive oil

Onion, garlic, 1/2 the thyme, rosemary, 2 T olive oil in pan. Saute over med heat until translucent.


Next ingredients:


Pour 1/2 C vermouth over onion mix, heat until alcohol begins burning off. Add beans, parsley, remainder of thyme. Stir gently until mix returns to simmer.


Give it about 2 mins for those flavors to start working together, then add enough low-sodium chicken broth to just come even with level of beans.


Bring to a simmer and back heat off almost to low. Let them heat about 30 mins and stir gently occasionally to keep from sticking/burning. (If they bubble too hard, or are stirred too often, they'll break down into mush ~ yech.)


If you're ready to serve, drizzle with more olive oil, season with salt and pepper to taste and garnish w/ fresh chopped parsley if desired. (If they're too thin for you, mash a few beans against the side of the pan with a spoon and stir back in. They'll thicken the mix.)

Now, we're doing these with marinated, grilled sirloin chops but often use this as a side for leg of lamb, setting slices atop the beans. You can also raise the heat on them a bit and stir in cleaned, chopped spinach or Swiss Chard and/or poached/grilled chicken chunks and serve with a crusty bread. (Tastes like a million bucks the next day, too.)

Bracing stuff for a winter's day!

*We usually double or triple this recipe, but Ebola's on a road trip, so the food bill's getting a break. If you double it, only go a hair more on the vermouth, like 3/4 C ~ with 6 cans of beans a full C is fine.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 06:43 PM | Comments (4)

January 01, 2006

The Dark Forces Are Gathering

...around the Weber.

Hickory chips are soaked. Secret schmear and ribs are ready.


One side, then the other.



Coals divided on either side of ancient ceremonial kettle, topped with wood chips, then the ribs centered on grill...


...and we're SCHMOkin'.

After 2 1/2 hours (a relatively quick smoke, not ideal by Major Dad standards), ribs are resting and dinner's almost on...


Add a Caesar, Hoppin' John and braised spinach, and our Redneck Riviera New Year's dinner...



...is served.

Happy New Year's, Swillers, from all of us!!

Posted by tree hugging sister at 05:37 PM | Comments (6)

A Quickie New Year's Nosh

The ingredients are staged and ready...

The dollar-size, savory Baby Vidalia pancakes are coming off the skillet...


...to be artfully plated by Major Dad, graciously acting as sous chef for today.


I think I'll keep him. Time to eat.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 03:26 PM | Comments (5)

December 30, 2005

A Late Photo Essay

Christmas Dinner at Casa de Major Dad*.

*A UN Declared "Turducken Free" Zone

Presents are opened...



...prime rib's a' resting. Bottle de vino a' breathing...

Crispy romaine, tomato, red onion and buttery croutons await the homemade Caesar dressing, redolent with anchovies, garlic and parmigiano reggiano.

The shrimps are at the table...

Go, go, GO!!

Best be quick to the plates, because Ebola's in the house and already starting to feed...

Posted by tree hugging sister at 07:26 PM | Comments (13)

December 29, 2005

Christmas Turducken!

Well, as promised, the much-anticipated turducken was prepared for the Christmas Day dinner! I've waited until now to post this, as I wanted to make sure that everyone got out of the hospital.

Well, I'm dressed and ready! Let's go...

Firstly, the beasty had been thawing in the back fridge for 5 days, right above the twice-baked potatos and keylime pie that I also slaved over:

Now it's out on the counter for you, you spineless beast!

Onto the rack...

And tented in the oven for 3 hours.

Not very exciting, really. Thank God I had a lot of wine and dear reader/de facto family member KCruella over to keep us company! She arrived shortly before the Turd came out of the oven to be de-tented...

WTF is that stuff oozing out? That's three different types of avian blood burbling up through the Frankensteinian sutures holding this unholy creation together, like some sort of Beverly Hillbilly/Marilyn Manson/Emeril nightmarish melange...thank goodness I was the only one in the kitchen at this point, or they would have been dialing Dominos.

Anyhow, back in the oven for another hour, spawn of Satan!

Man, the house is starting to smell great. Is this damn thing done yet?

170º! Yes! Now sit for 30 minutes while I heat up the twice-baked...

You can sort of see the stitching as it's on the platter.

Then you pull the thread out, slice it lengthwise down the center along the thread line, and cut the slices from that half...

The pride of any table!

But how did it taste, you ask? Well, interesting is the first thing that comes to mind. Overall, the cajun spices were fairly strong; I liked that, mind you, but I'm not so sure about everyone else. It was stuffed with a cornbread/pork stuffing that was divine, really. The turkey and the chicken were done, if I may say so, to perfection: still moist and full of flavor. The duck portion of it had a funny texture. Oh, it was definitely cooked, but the texture was more like...pork, I guess, then what I would expect duck to be.

I'm not sure it will reappear at Christmas, but I will certainly have another one at some point.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 06:45 PM | Comments (13)

December 21, 2005

A Christmas Roast Beast Primer

By virtue of long standing tradition, Casa de Major Dad always has Prime Rib for Christmas dinner, one of three Alien movies on the tube and a glass of the Macallan never far from hand (stinky cigars, too, if Bingley's in town). I thought I'd give you all a recipe heads up, as we'll be blogging this, but it'll be too late if you wanted to cook along. The basic recipe began as Marfa Stewart's (hence very fussy), but has been jazzed up and thoroughly ths'ified. We loves it and thought you might, too.

Roast Beast à la ths via Marfa

1 three-rib prime-rib, first cut, trimmed and tied
1 T freshly ground pepper *
2 T coarse salt *
3 short-ribs, tied **
1 1/2 cups dry, red wine

* Instead of S & P, we use a schmear consisting of about 1 t salt, ½ t dried thyme, 1/8 t ground celery seed, 1/2 t sugar, ¼ t pepper, ¼ t onion powder, ¼ t garlic powder, ¼ t arrowroot

** We don’t use these.

NOTE: Remove roast from fridge at least an hour prior to starting to let meat come to room temperature.

1. Place oven rack on lower level. Preheat oven to 450°. Rub roast all over (lovingly) with either S & P or schmear. Transfer to heavy 13 by 16 metal roasting pan. (We line the bottom with chunk onions, garlic, carrots and parsley, sprinkle with excess schmear, set roast atop.) Place short-ribs in pan.

2. Cook 20 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 325° and continue cooking until instant read thermometer*** inserted in thick end of roast (not touching bone) reaches 115°, about 1 hour and 25 minutes (less if roast is room temp). If it hasn't, return to oven, check temp at ten minutes intervals. (*** We use a digital constant read thermometer. It saves opening and shutting the oven door, all that lifting and lets you know exactly where the roast is temp-wise ~ great for timing the side dishes!)

3. Transfer roast to platter; set aside in warm spot for juices to collect. (As roast rests, temperatures will increase about 10°. DO NOT TENT or crust will get soggy. Adjust oven temp to 425°. (ONLY IF you're also making Yorkshire pudding.)

4. Pour fat and all drippings out of pan into fat separator and set aside.

5. Place roasting pan over med-hi heat. Pour red wine into pan; scrape bottom with wooden spoon, scooping up crispy bits to deglaze pan. Cook until reduced by half, 5 to 8 minutes. Place fine sieve in medium heat-proof bowl. Pour juices into strainer. Using wooden spoon, press down on solids to extract juices. Discard solids. Cover bowl tightly; keep warm in barely simmering saucepan with 1 inch water. Reserve pan drippings for Yorkshire Pudding.

If you'd like to know how we do our Yorkshire Pudding, lemme know.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 11:58 AM

December 20, 2005

Cooking With WunderKraut

Man, does it look yum!

There are many times when the best dinner in the world is breakfast...

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 08:54 AM | Comments (3)

December 14, 2005

For the Bingster and Suzette

Words escape me.

Chicken Salad Mold

1 (10 3/4-ounce) can chicken and rice soup

1 (3-ounce) package lemon Jell-O

1 (5-ounce) can chicken

1 (8-ounce) carton sour cream

1/2 cup mayonnaise

1 cup chopped celery

1/2 cup chopped pecans

Heat soup (do not add water). Add lemon Jell-O and stir until dissolved. Cool. In a separate bowl, mix all other ingredients. Fold into Jell-O mixture and spoon into a mold or 8-inch-by-8-inch dish. Chill.

To the instructions I can only add: bury in backyard.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 08:52 AM | Comments (22)

November 24, 2005

Wine for Thanksgiving, Part Deux

Panhandle style.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 07:21 PM | Comments (3)

Wine For Thanksgiving

Since it will really only be me and my bride imbibing, I think this should do...but I've got enough bottles in reserve in case I miscalculated.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 12:39 PM | Comments (1)

November 15, 2005

Just Because Something Can Be Done...

Doesn't mean it should be:

Jones Soda, the Seattle company that scored a hit during the last two holiday seasons with its turkey-and-gravy-flavored sodas, said it is offering the orange-hued fish-flavored drink this year in a nod to the Pacific Northwest's salmon catch.

"When you smell it, it's got that smoked salmon aroma," said Peter van Stolk, chief executive of Jones Soda.

And it carries this ringing endorsement from the company's chief executive:

...van Stolk said: "I cannot finish a bottle, I just can't."

I must say it is worth supporting a company with such candor...

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 10:41 AM | Comments (12)

November 07, 2005

Carnival of the Recipes

...is warming up the stove top!

Posted by tree hugging sister at 09:28 AM

October 29, 2005

Pig Time!

Well, it's Saturday and as Suzette figured out that means I'm drinking cooking!

First off, the beverage:

The Evil Clown™ had the Rutherford Grove 2000 Merlot on sale. Normally $30.99 it was discounted to $11.99. Muito Bom, as they say.

Ummmm, tasty. Lots of fruit, somewhat higher acidity than one would normally expect in a merlot, but good rasperry flavors. But whoa Nelly, there's a lot of sediment. Decant this puppy for guests!

Tonight we're having Spare Ribs!

Take that wussy-assed town councils in England!

Now I know that as a Yankee I am technically not allowed to cook spare ribs; I humbly beseech my southern brethren for their understanding in this matter.

Now, let's see, how to cook. I've decided on a dry rub of the following:

Yep: sea salt, chili powder, celery seed and paprika. The general rule of thumb with paprika is to always choose the brand with the most unpronounceable name you can find.

Mix them together:

Now don't ask me for measurements and proportions! I'm an artíste for gosh sake! Did they ask Michelangelo "how much 'blue' should I use?" Really, people.

Cut the piggy into manageable sections...

lovingly rub in the spices...

(calm down Ken)

Wunder, look! A pig mullet!

Yes, yes, we've been over this before: I've evolved, you haven't.

(nice drool though)

All ready to go sit in the fridge for a little while, whilst I read the latest Lileks which my bride bought!

Now, we've (that's the Royal We, btw) have been soaking some cherry in water for the schmokin'

Now we drain off the water und schlipp it under the grill...

We'll see you in a few hours, my precious!

UPDATE the First:

Dang! They're looking good; better get the spuds ready

Boil, dang ya!

Updated Update:

Finally!

Now, since daughter is of on a sleepover, we can have brussel sprouts!

La-dee-dum, into the steamer with you!

Oh gosh! The merlot's all gone!

Luckily we have a bottle of Pinot on standby...

One crisis averted! Now let's collect the yummies for the mashed potatos...

Ah, now it's time to eat! What a nice palate of colors...

Quite yum all around!

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 05:18 PM | Comments (12)

October 17, 2005

Pig Of The Day

From our new friends at Britishbacon.com

Wonder how long before some EuroPanel makes them change that URL...

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 02:51 PM | Comments (7)

October 16, 2005

Chicks And Beer

Well, to be precise, we're talking 1 chicken and some beer. Yes, it's time to cook the fabled Beer Can Chicken!

Let's see, what do we need:

1 whole chicken
1 can of beer
2 tablespoons Worchestershisterinnagoddadavidashire sauce
2 tablespoons cajun spices (I made the mistake of buying the Commie™ Whole Foods Brand. Do not repeat my mistake. Thanks be to Prudhomme I had some Konriko to add to it to liven it up a bit)
5 more cans of beer
1 smallish onion
1 beer can chicken holding gizmo

Er, the other pot was from lunch. Ignore it and it will go away.

Like all Cordon Glue chefs I have chosen my ingredients with care. This brand of beer was chosen because it reminded me of an incident from my college days when this brand was just introduced. Back in those more enlightened times the consumption of beer (hereinafter refered to as "The Usual Beverage" or simply TUB) was not so regulated on college grounds as it is today. Heck, we were served TUB in the dining hall; whereas now it's prohibited within 50 miles of any college students. Sigh. Anyhow, as I was saying before I was so rudely interupted, this particular brand of TUB, being the new TUB on the block, decided that the best way to garner brand awareness and market share was to sponsor lots of activities in conjunction with the various fraternities and sororities that lived for corporate freebies at Mr. Jefferson's University. So one fine spring weekend there were hundreds of sorority ladies drinking this brand and galavanting about the Grounds wearing free t-shirts that had this brand name boldly emblazoned across the front.

Amazingly, it took a few hours before they realized this was not something they really wanted to do.

Anyhow, back to the vittles: (warning: if you're on dial-up you may want to skip, as there are a lot of photos)

I thought to go with this i'd sauté some colorful fall veggies and bake a few spuds, so we also need:

1 large spud per person
coarse-ground sea salt

1 yellow squash
1 green zuchinni
10 or so grape tomaters
olive oil
butter
ground rosemary
basil
fresh ground black pepper

First off, get the grill going. I usually get it up to 500º then back it off to 350º, which is where you'll leave it for this. Next, open a TUB and have some.

Wash the spuds and poke 'em with a fork; since the spuds take the longest you want to get them going first:

Cover 'em with some sea salt

Wrap 'em up; sample TUB; put spuds on top rack of grill

Get the spices together (like I said, the Commie Foods Cajun spices are...disappointing; you can use whatever spices you want). TUB.

You get kibble. I get chicken and TUB.

Baby, you look mahvalous!

Now, take one can of TUB and, this is the difficult part so please pay attention, leave 1/3 of it in the can. Should I repeat that?

Now, in a unique twist on that college classic, you put a funnel into the TUB can and put half of the spice and the 2 tablespoons of Worchestershisterinnagoddadavidashire sauce into the can...

Place the tasty sauce-laden can in the fiendish device (alrightalrightalrightalready- it is the sauce that is tasty, not the can. Danggum English majors...)

Squeemish Alert! Warning Will Robinson!

Drink more TUB now. You should be on your 3rd. Good. Now clean out the bits inside the chicken, rinse it out and...I shudder at the memory...pretend that Foghorn was trying to sneak a nail clipper onto a domestic flight and you are a TSA employee; yes, friends, plonk him onto the device via The Cavity. Rules is rules, my fine feathered friend; no exceptions. Whew. Now rub the remaing spice onto his skin, and place the onion (peeled) inside the neck cavi, er, opening, to seal in the steam.

Place him on the grill, using a small foil pie plate with some water in it to catch the flare-up-able drippings

Have some more TUB over the next hour or so. When Foghorn is about15 minutes from being done, with the internal temp up to 170º or so, slice and quarter the veggies

in a skillet put some olive oil, butter, rosemary and basil and get it all sizzly

Add the veggies and sauté for a few minutes

Don't forget you TUB requirements

Looks about right

Now add the 'maters for just a few minutes

I'm thinking he's done

Do not attempt to drink this TUB. Let it go Luke...

Unwrap the spuds, globber them with cheese and sour cream, and enjoy!

I did this all on the grill, but it will work just as well in your oven. It was one juicy, tasty buzzard!

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 10:31 AM | Comments (13)

October 07, 2005

Pig Post of the Day

Expensive, yes, but excessively yummy piglets from Heritage Foods USA.

These guys do great work with FAMILY farmers, not today's industrial agriculture. Just browsing the breed descriptions makes one realize how far we've come in the homogenization of our food.

Heritage foods are foods derived from rare breeds of American livestock and crops with strong genetic authenticity and well-defined production protocols. Heritage Foods USA brings hard to find heritage foods with superior taste directly to American homes for holidays and special occasions. Because of their rarity and strict production protocols, heritage foods are currently produced only during certain periods of the year and in limited quantities.

You'll have sticker shock at the prices, BUT get on their emailing list and there's always a special that might be worth ordering for a 'special' dinner (And remember the prices INCLUDE shipping!). We ordered the four Berkshire Hog boneless loin chops and wow, wow, wow. I'll be photo blogging the grilling of the next two.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 10:35 AM | Comments (5)

October 02, 2005

Festive First of Fall Carnival of the Recipes!!

Blog o'Ram does a Cool Cat Daddio job of stringing it all together! Kudos and Swill Salutes!

Posted by tree hugging sister at 11:27 PM

It's In The Oven

As threatened, I am making Suzette's Cheddar Cheese Soup Pie.

I've gathered all the ingredients, and I've managed to overlook the fact that her instructions don't account for all the ingredients she lists. Try to trick me, will she? Ha! I say!

Update: MEDIC!!!!!

"Honey, did you pay the insurance this month?"

There you sit, oh can of cheddar cheese joy! Soon, yes soon you will know the joys of cuisine!

Er, well the saki is for me...it was a long night.

Only the finest, freshest ingredients for my family! Yes, i will rub my little fingers raw so that my beloveds taste only fresh lemon peel.

I can't believe I'm making this

Little lemony maggots are awfully cute.

Mix up that puppy! Hey, that bottle looks open...

Damn! I need another sip

Hmmm, those last little lumps just would not go away...

Into the oven, my Pretty!

Courage! Courage, Merry!

It comes out of the oven in a little while...

Update:

Hmm, I guess I got a little carried away with the blender and those 3 eggs, as it's looking awfully soufle-esque...

Now we wait for the cooling and refrigalbobulation to take hold.

Taste test after dinner!

Update 2:

Forgive me father...

Ya know, it ain't half bad! It tastes like a lemony cheese cake (the fresh peel is key, me thinks), there's really not a cheddar cheese soup flavor at all.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 03:17 PM | Comments (11)

September 28, 2005

Shall I Sing The Glory Of The Can?

I have tried to rein in my disappointment, I truly have, for those canned recipes below. Oh, sure, Suzette's cheddar cheese soup pie is exciting, a thing of beauty in fact, but all of these recipes contain one fatal flaw: something not out of a can. Now, I admit that Keith's recipe comes closest to what I'm looking for, to what I truly expect from such a distinquished group of contributers, but to raise the level of the discourse I must present my bride's world famous

5 Can Casserole

1 can tuna
1 small can evaporated milk
1 can chicken noodle soup
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 can chow mein noodles

Mix all the cans in 1 1/2 qt casserole (open them first, Ken), and bake uncovered at 350º for 45 minutes uncovered. Let it sit for a few minutes after taking it out, as the temp is still nukular.

Now eat it.

This, my friends, is the highest pinnacle of mid-western cuisine.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 05:55 PM | Comments (10)

In Honor of Hep Cats, Cool Daddios and Maxwell Smart: Regrettable Recipes

In a horrible confluence of epic proportions, the Fates have seen fit to gather Get Smart, Mr. Summers' Maynardisms and the arrival of two canned soup recipe cards, all in one two-day period. These events, in turn, call to mind the ghastly pictures in Mr. Lileks book. Having been thusly traumatized (and one who never ignores edicts from outside our earthly realm), I have declared today shall be henceforth know as:

The Official Canned Condensed Cream Soup Recipes Day

I shall start by sharing the two questionable treasures sent to me from the remote mountainous region of New Jersey, then encourage you to add those Citadels of Sodium and Titans of Tin culled from your memory/recipe banks.

Saucy Chicken

4 boneless, skinless breast halves (3-3 1/2 lbs)
1/2 t salt
1/4 t pepper
1 can condensed cream of chicken soup, undiluted
1/2 C Miracle Whip
1 t lemon juice
1/2 t onion powder
1 C (4 oz.) shredded cheddar cheese (white)
cooked noodles

Brown chicken in skillet on med. heat. Arrange chicken in 9x12 baking dish. Mix salt, pepper, soup, lemon juice, onion powder and Miracle Whip. Pour over chicken, sprinkle cheese over it.
Bake 375°, 40 minutes. Serve over noodles.

No Peek Chicken

Cut up chicken breasts
1 can condensed chicken soup (cream)
1 can condensed celery soup (cream)
1 1/2 C milk
1 1/2 C long grain rice
1 pkg dry onion soup mix

Mix well together. Put in baking dish. Push chicken down*, sprinkle with onion soup mix. Cover with foil and bake at 325° for 2 hours.
Don't Peek!

*I'm assuming you have to force the chicken into the mixture because it struggles to escape if not immediately subdued.

There you have it. American culinary classics and I know, KNOW, that there are thousands of others out there, just waiting to be shared. If the comments section gives you fits, email them to moi (recipes-at-beegewelborn-dot-com). I'll transcribe and credit you for them in this post. (Oh, yeah baby, your name goes on it. For everybody to see.)

UPDATE: Intrepid Bingley (sacrificing himself for fellow Swillers, mind you) Blogs Baking Cheddar Cheese Canned Soup Cheesecake ~ Film Way Before 11!!!

Posted by tree hugging sister at 09:58 AM | Comments (25)

August 09, 2005

What I'm Drinking Tonight

1998 Wynns Coonawarra Estate Michael Shiraz

I'm rather disappointed by this wine. I like shiraz that are full of cassis and plummy, chewy fruit, and all the write-ups that I saw on this wine said it was full of such.

Well, it ain't. I mean, were it a $12 bottle I'd have nothing to complain about, as it does have a nice full body and some nice leathery and cedar flavors, but the tons-o-fruit just ain't there, and it has a touch more tannins than I usually expect in a shiraz; it actually drinks more like a cab. At $25 it ain't a keeper.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 09:14 PM | Comments (3)

August 01, 2005

Cold Comfort to the Small Bakeries...

...or, say like, Prince spaghetti for that matter, who went through hard times and/or lost their businesses because of this nonsense.

Atkins Nutritionals files for bankruptcy
Company has been hurt by waning popularity of its namesake diet

You'd have to pry the crust of artisanal bread from my cold, dead fingers before I'd ever give it up.

UPDATE: Bwahahahaha! What a hoot!

Low-Cash Diet

Free ketchup, mustard packets dominate new Atkins weight-loss program.

Aug. 2 - Two days after filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, Atkins Nutritionals Inc. said today that although its low-carb diet had lost its luster, the company was introducing what it called "a low-cash diet guaranteed to melt those pounds away."...

...Showing a newly reconfigured Atkins food period, Pankow said that dieters on the new low-cash weight-loss program would eat mainly free ketchup and mustard packets foraged from fast-food restaurants like McDonald's and Burger King.

"And at the end of the first week, to celebrate you have a packet of relish for dessert," Pankow added.

Oh yeah, baby.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 09:50 AM | Comments (3)

July 05, 2005

Oh Yeah, That'll Make a Difference

First GM, now McDonald's. Clueless, completely clueless.

Mickey D's wants to make workers 'phat'?
Report says McDonald's had asked Tommy Hilfiger, P. Diddy, among others, for a 'uniform' makeover...

..."We're looking at how do we make our uniforms more appealing, more desirable*," Bill Lamar, chief marketing officer for McDonald's (Research) USA, was quoted in the report as saying.

Okay, Lucy, lemme 'splain this one. More. Time. It's a PRODUCT and CUSTOMER SERVICE/lack there of issue. Both of those need to be "more appealing, more desirable", before some sweaty teenager at the register's polo shirt. AND I could give a rat's ass what your uniforms look like, when the doofusses enrobed in them stack a BigMac with the two hamburger patties in one layer and the cheese in the other. Routinely.
Yeah, Micky D's. Welcome to my world.
*emph. mine

Posted by tree hugging sister at 01:01 PM | Comments (3)

June 23, 2005

Say Hello To MacInslosh™

Friends, summer is upon us, and that means good food, good friends, and lots of drinking, especially drinking of chilled wine. I admit it: in the winter I'm all about top-flight kick-butt reds. In the summer, however, I let my hair down a bit (metaphorically, mind you, as there is presently very little to let down, and no, I'm not a member) and I enjoy cold white and blush wines.

Well, about 5 years ago I had the shell of a Mac Classic lying about,

and I thought "what can I do with this thing?" I mean, MacAquariums were so 90s....what to do.

As always, my bride provided the inspiration, as she had recently bought 2 boxes of wine (an invention that we owe to our Coalition of the Swilling partner Australia). Lightning struck, and the MacInslosh was born...

The observant viewer will notice the cut-outs in the front grill, and the hints of styrofoam peeking through:

I took out the mother board, all the various guts and the crt, smoothed off all the rough edges, and added some foam insulation. To replace the screen front, I made a desktop on a working Mac SE, named the hard drive "MacInslosh" and added the text and icons that you see on the picture here:

took a screen shot of it and then printed the screen shot on an overhead projector transparency:

Oh look, 10 liters of wine have been discovered on my dining room table!

Bladders o'booze:

10 liters fits perfectly in a compact Mac's shell (and winds up looking like C3P0's dream date, to boot):

After carefully threading the taps through the holes cut into the front grill of the 'Slosh I re-attach the front piece and stand her up:

Pop her into the back fridge:

And we are in business!

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 08:30 PM | Comments (12)

June 11, 2005

Back to Business

MSNBC.com has finally caught up to the trendsetting Major Dad fiefdom.

ALBANY, N.Y. - A line of taps pouring elegant brews from Bass to Blue Moon beckon twentysomethings packed into Bomber’s bar. But 21-year-old Elliot Cunniff orders something homier for himself and a friend.

"Two Yuenglings," he tells the bartender, explaining the attraction after a sip from his pint glass.

"Price. Color. Flavor," he says. "And the name alone, 'ying-ling,'"

We've been quaffing copious swills of this particular bottle of ambrosia for years now. The country's oldest brewery (1829), great story and yummyyummyyumyum! (Anheuser-Busch is being a bit disingenuous in their current ad campaigns.) One more painless reason to buy American.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 07:23 PM | Comments (4)

June 01, 2005

Sin On a Sheet...

...a cookie sheet, that is. Darkdarkdark chocolate cookies with white and semi-sweet (read:DARK) chocolate chips. If Agent XYZ agrees NOT to send Bingley any more cool Magic Hats, some might just find their way to Kuwait. Or wherever secret agents hang out these days.

UPDATED with foodie photograph for our frenzied fans and check out this week's Carnival of the Recipes, hosted by Drew at Conservative Friends. Looks and TASTES great, less filling!

A note about the ingredients ~ I tend to tweak things almost immediately, so where a staid, normal staple is called for, if I used something a bit different that affects the taste, I've noted it. (Being the tree hugging sister, the fact that the eggs, sour cream, flour etc. is all organic is a given.)

1 c +1 T unsalted butter (Land-o-Lakes baking butter)
1 3/4 c sugar (Florida Crystals natural/organic)
2 lrg eggs
2 t vanilla
1/4 c sour cream
2 c unbleached all purpose flour
3/4 c + 3 T unsweetened cocoa (dutch process)
1/2 t baking soda
1/4 t baking powder
1/2 t salt
12 oz white chocolate chips
6-8 oz semisweet choc chips (nestle for both)

Oven 350º

1. W/ electric mixer, beat butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs, one at a time. Add sour cream, mix thoroughly.

2. Sift together the flour, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Add by thirds to sugar mix in bowl, incorporating well after each addition. Stir in white and dark chips, stir until distributed evenly through.

3. Drop by teaspoonfuls on cookie sheets (buttered if things tend to stick to yours). Keep batter in fridge in between cookie sheet loadings. Check at 10 minutes. (In my oven they need twelve. You're looking for cooked but not crispy-crispy.) Pull cookies out, let them rest a minute or two, then remove them to a rack. Let cool completely. These will have a crumbly, brownie-like texture, so don't be horrified if they break apart a bit. It makes clean-up a snap!

UPDATE: I wanted to take one of those 'Bone Appetite' type pics, but there's a 23 year old vulture in the house. At least you can see that clean-up really is easy.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 08:09 PM | Comments (12)

May 25, 2005

I'm Freakin' Starving...

On Hot Dogs from Pravda. Since I can't get myself a dirty water dog and limp sauerkraut in the schwamps here, I hie thee hither to the Winn Dixie, grab a package of Nathan's and force Major Dad to light the coals. Sauerkraut, De Maille mustard and Heinz organic ketchup. Sweet Mary, Mother of mercy. Kosher heaven on a bun. And you?

So what constitutes a great hot dog? To me, it's a grilled, kosher-style frank served on a lightly toasted bun with slightly spicy mustard and a homemade onion or pickle relish that is neither too sweet nor too hot. The Old Town Bar on East 18th Street not only toasts the bun that encases its grilled natural-casing all-beef Sabrett dog, it butters it as well. Sublime! Sauerkraut is also fine atop my dogs, though every once in a while I crave one prepared Southern style, with cole slaw. My ideal dog should fit neatly into its bun, sticking out by at most an inch on each end.

Fly (and anyone else who waxes poetic over snausages), if you want the whole article, email me and I'll send it to ya.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 10:16 AM | Comments (9)

May 11, 2005

Large, Luscious, Naked Breasts

Hmmmmm. What to do, what to do...

Orange-Ancho or Raspberry Chipotle? What to do, what to do...

Sometimes I think we sail under a lucky star. Hold that. I KNOW we do. A young Lt. befriended by Major Dad turned out to be a Johnson and Wales trained chef. He is now leaving for primary flight training and was cleaning out his freezer. Upon review of his aquaintances, he knew no one else in his circle (read:beer swilling buddies) would appreciate the fresh duck breasts, rabbit and filo, etc. that needed a place to land. So guess who came home with a cooler full, bless that Lt.'s little pointy head?!

After a furious arm wrestling interlude, the Orange-Ancho wins. (Major Dad's a brute who cheats, but that's another post.)
We came up with Grilled Duck Breasts and an Orange-Ancho Chili reduction, tastefully presented over Wild Mushroom Risotto. Oh. God.
(and weird how Ebola walks through the door at precisely the right moment...)

As soon as I remember what we did, recipes to follow.
(and it's a frickin' CAB, poophead and pete...and a steal for the price...okay? huh? huh?)

Posted by tree hugging sister at 09:53 PM | Comments (4)

Wine Lover Update

According to my just arrived Free the Grapes newsletter, Texass has become the 27th state to support limited, regulated direct to consumer wine shipments.

Authored by State Senator Frank Madla (D-San Antonio), and signed into law May 9 by Governor Perry, the bill declared the entire state "wet" for wine shipments. On June 26, 2003, the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals confirmed that Texas’ ban on interstate direct wine shipments was unconstitutional. Later that year, the Texas Alcohol Beverage Commission declared that the state was "open" for direct shipments but ruled that all wineries must comply with existing wet and dry rules. This requirement limited direct shipments because the definitions of wet and dry areas were not defined by zip codes. Senator Madla’s bill resolved this issue by making the entire state wet and gained the support of the Texas ABC and local wineries. The bill also requires licensed wineries to pay excise and sales taxes, creating a new source of revenue for the state.

They also noted:

Separately, the U.S. Supreme Court is expected to issue a ruling in May or June on the December 7 argument that considered whether or not the 21st Amendment permits states to allow intra-state shipments from its wineries to consumers, but deny that same privilege to out-of-state wineries.

Jeez louise, I hope they come through on this, as I'm stuck in one of the backwoods bastions that'll be affected. Bingley has to have lovely presents of wine bottles shipped to a friend of ours in AL. (I get to do a daring border run to pick them up. Five minutes away, okay, but it is another state. Well, actually damn near a third world country, but I digress.) The FL wholesalers have the legislature so tightly wrapped that wine can't come into the state UNLESS it goes through them first. What a racket. (Of course, the MADD and Christian anti-alcohol bunch have their puddies in the mix, too.) Then there's the emotional appeal about protecting the children ~ if one allows internet wine sales and has children online, one has drunken children. Everyone knows they are incapable of not ordering that $50 bottle plus $15 shipping. Or for 12 year olds with a real problem, 2 or 3 or 4 bottles, and just knockin' 'em back around the Nintendo.

Hmmm. Maybe I've been wrong all along. I mean, look what happened with Bingley and his Atari and Crusader and...

Forget everything I said.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 12:11 PM | Comments (32)

May 09, 2005

A Slurp in Time...

...saves your mind. Research that I can completely live agree with, so swill away.

Now, what do we see when we look at all those moderate drinkers? For one thing, they are more highly educated. According to one study, the percentage of college graduates who drank in the month previous to a survey was nearly 70%, while the same survey showed the rate of drinkers among those with less than a high school education to be under 40%. Those moderate drinkers also earn more; in one study, even when controlling for education, age, occupation, region, and health, abstainers had incomes on average 10% less than drinkers.

And all of those highly-educated, high income earning people are also more intelligent. They have better health, fewer accidents, and greater longevity. And they drink. Therefore, I would suggest that the higher IQs of all those drinkers is the "fundamental cause" of their better health; at a minimum, it is a confounding factor that needs to be controlled for in further studies on the beneficial effects on health of alcohol. Such studies could ascertain whether moderate drinking is indeed good for you, or whether all of those drinkers would have better health anyway, because of their higher general intelligence.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 03:37 PM | Comments (5)

May 08, 2005

The Caipirinha

In honor of Mother's Day, I figured it was time to share with my fellow fellows the secret of the caipirinha. Friends, there is no finer drink on God's Green Earth, and no surer way of rendering your beloved most amiable. In fact, caipirinha means "dang, you look fine! Yes! Yes!" in Portuguese. Really. Trust me on this.

Anyhow, let's begin:

First off, one needs to gather the ingredients. For each drink you need a suitable Lowball glass (due to slow production times I was only able to have one suitable glass), 1 lime, ice, a finely-ground sugar (I use this organic sugar from Florida. Ok, call me a commie, but it really has a wonderful flavor (yes, sugar with flavor); I blame THS for introducing me to this), and, most importantly, some cachaça, which is a Brazilian rum that, by itself, tastes like a cross between paint thinner and used nail polish remover, but in a caipirinha it is simply divine. I've got out a bunch of different cachaça brands for illustrative purposes:

You need 1 lime per drink. Cut the lime into eights

and place in the glass thusly

Now take your wooden spoon and mash those puppies up! Release those juices! Die, Lime Scum!

Now fill the glass with ice.

Fill the glass to within a finger of the top with cachaça.

Add commie sugar to taste. I mean that. Some people like them not too sweet, while others (like me) like them all Jim Jones Kool-Aid-y. Stir well!

Come to Papa!

For parties I've made pitchers of them, and they've been big hits.

Enjoy!

And remember, there's no reason to drink responsibly when you're home!

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 10:14 PM | Comments (23)

May 07, 2005

What I'm Drinking Tonight

Very yum. Has a full, velvety feel, loaded with fruit and cassis. The 20% petite sirah adds some nice tannins to this very potent beauty: we're talking 15.9% alcohol! It will be very nice with the filets that daughter has requested.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 07:28 PM | Comments (7)

Yums!

...with those sizzling lambs last night. Makes the guilt easier to bear.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 12:53 PM | Comments (7)

May 04, 2005

That Irrefutable Sign of Spring...

...which, in our neck of the woods, equates to the very first chartreuse leaves peeking from the pecan branches. They're the very last to bloom and, when they finally do, there will be no more frosts. Guaranteed. (An ironclad promise compared to that rodent up North.)

To honor the groves fleshing out (and use up the pecans in the freezer), I humbly submit a
Bourbon Pecan Pie with Bourbon Cream.

1 prepared 10" pie shell

Pecan Pie
1/4 C dark, unsulphured molasses
1 C dark brown corn syrup
1 C dark brown sugar
4 T butter
4 LG eggs, beaten
3 C pecan halves (checked for shells)
1 t vanilla
3 T bourbon

Bourbon Cream*
1 cup chilled whipping cream
2 tablespoons sugar
1 T bourbon

Preheat Oven ~ Temp 350°

Put prepared crust in deep dish pie plate. Combine syrups and sugar in a deep non-reactive saucepan over med-low heat. Stir constantly until the sugar has melted. Add butter and continue to stir until melted. Turn off heat. Dribble a small amount of hot syrup mix in a steady stream into the eggs while quickly whisking the two together. (This raises the temperature of the egg gradually and cools the milk slightly.) Continue to dribble in the hot syrup and whisk until you feel, with your hand, that the bowl's side or bottom has become warm or as close as possible to the liquid's temperature. Return egg mix to syrup in saucepan and stir until completely incorporated. Stir in vanilla and bourbon. Dump in pecans and mix thoroughly. Pour filling into prepared crust. Bake pie until edges puff and center is just set, about 45-50 minutes. (If edges seem to be browning too quickly, cover with strips of foil to prevent burning.) Cool pie on rack at least 1 hour. (Can be made 6 hours ahead. Let stand at room temperature.) Serve with dollop of bourbon whipped cream.
NOTE: Sometimes, just to up the calorie count, and dazzle as a presentation, I'll drizzle the slices with melted, tempered bittersweet chocolate. Looks fab, tastes GREAT and the dark stuff's really good for you! Really!

*Bourbon Cream

Beat 1 cup chilled whipping cream, 2 tablespoons sugar, and remaining 1 tablespoon bourbon in large bowl until soft peaks form. Serve pie warm or at room temperature with bourbon cream.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 02:03 PM | Comments (5)

May 01, 2005

Not Just 'Don't Drink the Water' Anymore

Today's Travel Section in Pravda offers an article on the coming of age of Mexico's viniculture. And a truly horrific explanation for why Mexican wines were so abysmal.
Forgive me. I had to share:

In the land of tequila and cerveza, wine has traditionally been a hard sell. Annual wine consumption in Mexico is less than that of the city of San Diego, just across the border. One reason for this was that Mexican wine was notoriously bad: it was often aged in used whiskey barrels, which had an understandably adverse affect on the wine's flavor, and, thanks to onerous trade restrictions, it was often made in a creative vacuum without any comparison to European or American vintages.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 04:46 PM | Comments (9)

April 29, 2005

In Honor of the Big Apple Gathering Tonight

(Which is much nicer than my being pissy about it like Mr. Summers, 'cause I can't go either.)
Since Bingley has already posted this week's Swilling entry, I thought I'd pass along a bittersweet but fascinating Pravda Op-Ed piece (lifted in it's entirety for whiney Jersey Boy Fly) about the closing of a Times Square institution:
Howard Johnson's.

With decanters of Martinis or Manhattans for one of the best Happy Hours ever, or the tender fried clam sandwich our Dad always ordered, you could count on that blue roof. The contributer to today's page on the subject momentarily stunned me. Fried clam strips, orange and blue color scheme, great American french fries and...Jaques Pépin?!! Yup. How cool is that?

Howard Johnson's, Adieu By JACQUES PÉPIN Madison, Conn.

WHEN word spread that the last Howard Johnson's restaurant in New York City, in Times Square, would probably close, there was something of an uproar. Though plans are uncertain, brokers say it is likely that a big retail chain will replace it. The idea that this icon of American dining will disappear from the city landscape made me particularly sad, since it was at Howard Johnson's that I completed my most valuable apprenticeship.

I had been in America only eight months when I started working at Howard Johnson's. I moved there from Le Pavillon, a temple of French haute cuisine, where I had been working since my arrival in the United States in 1959. Howard Johnson, who often ate at Le Pavillon, hired me and my fellow chef, Pierre Franey.

It was Mr. Johnson's contention that I should learn about the Howard Johnson Company from the ground up. I worked a few months as a line cook at one of the largest and busiest Howard Johnson's restaurants at the time, on Queens Boulevard in Rego Park. I flipped burgers, cooked hot dogs and learned about the specialties of the house, among them tender fried clams made from the tongues of enormous sea clams whose bodies were used as the base for the restaurants' famous clam chowder. Other specialties I became familiar with included macaroni and cheese, hash browns, ice cream sundaes, banana splits, and, certainly, apple pies.

Howard Johnson's was my American apprenticeship, and it was a long one, nearly 10 years, mostly spent in the company's Queens Village commissary. Mr. Johnson gave me and Pierre carte blanche, and we experimented with different types of stews, like beef burgundy, and dishes like scallops in mushroom sauce. I became comfortable using 1,000-gallon pots and operating enormous machines. Mr. Johnson would often visit us at the test kitchen to taste, ask questions and make suggestions. He might tell us that the last time the sauce was thinner or ask why we were using frozen button mushrooms in the beef stew or why we had changed the size of the clam croquettes.

After working on a standard Howard Johnson's recipe in the test kitchen, Pierre and I would prepare it in progressively larger quantities, improving its taste by cutting down on margarine and replacing it with butter, using fresh onion instead of dehydrated onion, real potatoes instead of frozen ones. We made fresh stock in a quantity requiring 3,000 pounds of veal bones for each batch, and we daily boned 1,000 turkeys and made 10 tons of frankfurters.

Albert Kumin, the famous Swiss pastry chef, soon joined us, working to set up a pastry department that produced 10 tons of Danish pastries a day for the hundreds of restaurants in the chain and thousands and thousands of apple, cherry, blueberry and pumpkin pies each day. This was my first exposure to mass production. I developed products for the Red Coach Grill, which was the Cadillac of the Howard Johnson chain, as well as the Ground Round, and the grocery division of the company, which supplied supermarkets, schools and other institutions.

Pierre and I would occasionally visit the restaurants on the New Jersey Turnpike or the New England Thruway to see how our commissary inventions were faring with the customers. But I loved the restaurant in Times Square especially, and often went there, incognito with my friend Jean-Claude. We enjoyed fried clams, and with them we always drank what was the best Manhattan cocktail in town - it came with a full pitcher for refills alongside the initial filled glass.

Unfortunately, the orange roof with the Simple Simon logo has all but disappeared. Few of the restaurants left - among them the one in Times Square - are still called Howard Johnson's (the apostrophe indicates one of the early restaurants). For me, Howard Johnson's reliable, modestly priced food embodies the straightforwardness of the American spirit. It saddens me that New Yorkers looking for this kind of gentleness and simplicity will soon have to find it elsewhere. It won't be easy.

Jacques Pépin is the author, most recently, of "Fast Food My Way."

Posted by tree hugging sister at 02:37 PM | Comments (13)

April 27, 2005

What I'm Drinking Tonight

If you are looking for a nice peaty Scotch, and I know you are, but you're somewhat afraid of Laphraoig, then Bowmore 12 Yr may be the scotch for you. It has a smooth peatiness with a honeyed finish. Ok, that sounds pompous as hell but trust me: pour yourself a glass and you will know exactly what I mean.

Or, you could be like me and drink it out of one of these:

a pewter Jefferson Cup. I don't want to hear any crap about Waterford crystal; I like drinking out of these cups. I have many fond memories (and many more indistinct ones) of drinks in these cups.

Look at the scratches and wear and tear on that cup! If only it could talk, it would say things like "Brrrrrr, learn to drink scotch neat!"

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 08:27 PM | Comments (12)

April 17, 2005

A Well Spent Twelve Bucks 'n Change

Last night with dinner, now that we realized Major Dad's Loratab label only says alchohol could 'make him drowsy'. Well, then! One needs rest after surgery so drowsy it is!

The vino was jammyjammy yumyums and a worthy contender in the Ravenswood et al, $12-$17 range.
(Price @ World Market.)

Posted by tree hugging sister at 02:59 PM | Comments (1)

March 25, 2005

Lunch In Buzios

Yum. A grilled 2 lb. lobster and a caipirinha.

Everything goes great with caipirinhas.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 09:27 AM | Comments (7)

March 24, 2005

Waiter...

...there's a finger in my chili...

*Update: You knew there had to be more, right? The search is on

"All employees’ digits were accounted for, officials said, adding that the well-cooked finger may have come from a food processing plant that supplies the company..."

Posted by tree hugging sister at 10:47 AM | Comments (20)

March 13, 2005

Something To Eat With A Nice Zinfandel

Here's a one-pan recipe (well, technically two, but the rice doesn't count...much) for chicken cooked with a curried tomato sauce.

A Bingley Original™

Ingredients:
1 lb chicken breasts (here after referred to as "Pamelas"*)
1 med-lrg onion
a couple cloves of garlic, crushed (one can never have enough garlic)
1 - 28oz can of crushed tomatos
1 lime
1 Tbsp curry powder (more or less to taste; I don't measure, I just dump some in)
pepper
garlic salt
2 Tbsp olive oil

Take the lime and from one half slice off the Arctic Circle, the Tropic of Cancer, and the Equator. Put these on the side. Use the balance of the lime in gin and tonics for you and your bride. Warm the olive oil in a large sauté pan over medium heat. Cut the Pamelas into roughly 1-inch chunks, sprinkle with a little garlic salt and pepper, and start them cooking in the oil. Chop the onion and add it to the pan, stirring it and the Pamelas frequently to make sure they get cooked. Add the garlic. Add a little more. When the onions are clear and the Pamelas are no longer pink add the crushed tomatos and the curry powder and stir it in. Add the lime slices and gently stir them below the surface. Reduce heat and cook, covered, for 25 minutes. Remove lime slices before serving.

We always have this on top of rice, which is convenient because the rice takes 25 minutes as well, so you put the rice on when you add the crushed tomatos, etc. I add a little cardamom to the rice as it's cooking as the flavor goes very well with the curry.

*You don't really need an explanation for this, do you?

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 03:17 PM | Comments (6)

March 07, 2005

Acknowledgement is the first phase of recovery, right?

My name is Sister. I am an addict and THIS is the face of evil...

Posted by tree hugging sister at 12:46 PM | Comments (15)

February 28, 2005

What I'm Drinking Tonight

How could I resist a wine named "Ball Buster"? Especially when it's from the Barossa Valley, is 60% Shiraz, 19% Merlot and 21% Cabernet Sauvignon? I couldn't. And neither should you. For the modest outlay of $15 you get a full bodied, spicy smooth cedary fruity wine that is just yum yum yum. Plus, it's Australian. What's not to love? I'm eating a big plate full of chicken anduille sausages right now with some rice and black beans, and this wine is shouting out "laissez roulez les bon temps" which I think translates as "Damn I'm thirsty! Lemme' fill up that glass again!"

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 06:14 PM | Comments (8)

February 26, 2005

Swill Stuff

If you'd like to order your very own Sod Off Swampy T Shirt, here's your chance to. $20 each and the shipping's included.(as long as you live in CONUS-foreign rates negotiable {8^P)

Are we sports or what??!

Gotta Order Me One!!

They're quite generously sized, soft as a baby's butt and what every well dressed swiller will be wearing this spring. I have beaten Bingley senseless, so all four sizes ~ small, medium, large & extra large ~ are available.


Ebola was kind enough to don one for this photo, until he can hook up one of his babe friends for a properly cheesy shot. He doesn't work cheap either ~ that's my last Old Peculier in his mitt.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 09:54 PM | Comments (4)

February 08, 2005

Currently in my glass 2

Bowmore's 12 year old Islay

(sorry, I didn't get a chance to take a picture of it last night)

If you want to find out what Islay is about, this may be a good place to start. A full bodied, peaty whisky that has a nice sweet character. While the peat is strong the sweetness keeps it from being overpowering.

Yum.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 08:35 AM | Comments (2)

February 05, 2005

Continuing with our "Fun Named Hootch" theme

Just a wee dram before dinner

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 07:05 PM | Comments (7)

Currently in my glass

I'm finishing off a bottle of "Casa Lapostolle" 2002 Cabernet Sauvignon Raphael Valley, Chile which was given to us by some friends. While I admit that part of this wine's appeal to me is the name (I said to my bride "Honey, I'm going postal!") as I pulled the bottle out of the cabinet, it has a lot of structure and fruit. It may in fact be too tannic for some folks. I wouldn't be at all surprised if it contains some cabernet franc, although the label makes no mention of it. All in all, perfectly decent if you like a full-bodied red, and while mine was *ahem* free, Chilean wines are always good values.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 04:40 PM

February 04, 2005

yum

That about covers tonight

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 09:56 PM | Comments (16)