“So my jambalaya recipe is designed to be faster to make than traditional jambalaya. If it’s quicker without appreciably affecting taste, I’m all for it. It’s also a hybrid – served gumbo style — and it’s Creole inspired. But like all Creole cooking, it has lots of ingredients and options due to garden availability and a myriad immigrant influences. Hopefully, I’ve listed enough of these options to feel good about making it…”.
“To avoid freezer burn in your short-term cooking projects, take a few additional steps, whether for pre-browned meat, vegetable stocks or simple leftovers.”
“The Cult of Mighty Pesto says I should always seek wise counsel from folks whose recipes are completely authentic, historic and blessed by The Pope. Do not seek the so-called experts who think they know Italian cooking solely because they once brushed up against a gardener whose uncle met Al Pacino’s barber at a Pavarotti concert.”
“In fact, cannibalism might be preferable to British food…. They do have tikka marsala, but I’d have to make it out of a parrot and milk a monkey for the cream. Certainly, British food is so unhealthy that the cannibals would get their regular meat supply from natural causes.”
“Because I’m picking the two, uh three, basic spices and four other basics needed to cook anything — and anyone — in all the common national-ethnic styles … like Hannibal — with a CAN-DO attitude — CAN-ni-bal… leg of Larry … herbs for Herb.”
“Mom briefed us about poke being poison, especially the berries, yet she’d also eaten the fresh spring leaves her whole life. So she wasn’t militant about it. The plant was largely considered a farm nuisance due to its size and general lack of usefulness.”
“Cooking is still the best way to kill food borne bacteria. But how much cooking is enough to do the job? Should I nearly burn everything?”
“That said, one can help avoid cross-contamination with a few simple steps. Cross contamination is the most likely way these bugs get into your foodstuffs.”
“If legislation is truly designed to help small organic farmers, make it so. If legislation is designed to help big farmers move toward organic, make it so. But blurring the two with the word “family” only helps the corporate guys take advantage of us. “
“It doesn’t rely on meat for its flavor, so playing with it can teach one a lot about enhancing taste, with or without meat in the recipe.”
“To avoid these embarrassing situations, it’s best to have a few sports clichés to stymie these conversations quickly.”
“There is nothing like coming home from the beach, hot, sweaty, covered with a layer of sand, followed by jumping into the cool clean water…”
