Monday, August 20, 2012
Saturday, August 18, 2012
Happy Hour The Southside
For this week's Happy Hour, I’m harkening back to the drink that taught me to truly appreciate the flavor of spirits: the Southside.
Many years ago, I was a semi-regular at a private beach club as the guest of a friend (What’s up, Vince!). For the first time, I was privy to how the other half lives: The parking lot dotted with vintage Mercedes, people named Muffy and Scooter who looked like they'd popped out of a Polo ad. Guests with windswept hair lounged about and dined alfresco, attended by young men in white who scurried to set up their umbrellas and pull out their chairs. But what really impressed me about this rarefied environment was the bar—and, specifically, the Southside cocktail. I've always liked drinking, of course, but I didn’t always enjoy the taste. So when I sipped a properly balanced cocktail for the first time—one with fresh lemon juice and sugar and a hit of fresh mint that accompanied the flavor of the alcohol instead of masking it—a light went on. I finally understood the intrinsic appeal of spirits. And I’ve never looked back.
The Southside works with pretty much any base spirit. My first was with bourbon, but if you simply say “Southside” at the beach club, you'll get a rum drink. It was originally made with gin, and legend has it that the Southside was invented at the esteemed 21 Club in New York City; it is the signature cocktail of that establishment to this day, which could also explain why it's so popular with the country-club set.
A seedier version of the Southside's roots has it that Chicago gangsters (from the South Side) were looking to hide the taste of nasty Prohibition-era bathtub gin. But regardless of its origins, the Southside is a light, refreshing cocktail that's easy to make and just screams for sand and surf. And to make this week's Happy Hour truly special, I managed to track down veteran barkeep Roger Latter, the very same man who served me my first Southside all those years ago, for the recipe. Enjoy!
The Southside
(Recipe courtesy of Roger Latter)
What you'll need:
2 oz dark rum (Roger prefers Mount Gay rum, but any quality base spirit works fine)
1 oz fresh sour mix (Make a simple syrup by boiling 1/2 cup of water and stirring in 1/2 cup of sugar until it dissolves. Let it cool and combine with 1/2 cup lemon and 1/2 cup lime juice.)
8 to 10 fresh mint leaves
How to make it:
Combine ingredients in a shaker and shake vigorously so the mint bruises slightly. Pour and serve. Garnish with a lemon wedge.
Via: Happy Hour The Southside
Thursday, August 16, 2012
MacGyver Meals With Extreme Chefs Marsh Mokhtari
When I cook in the humble kitchen in my apartment—which has no dishwasher—I sometimes feel like I'm really roughing it. And for those of you whipping up dinner after dinner in a cramped bachelor pad, you may feel like there's only one thing standing between you and restaurant-quality chow: counter space.
On Extreme Chef, the Food Network competition show, some of America's most talented chefs are tasked with making four-star quality dishes amid a range of serious environmental and physical challenges, such as torrential downpours and hail storms. They don't even have the luxury of buying ingredients at a market—they dive for fish or locate ingredients on a treasure map.
And that was all just last season. Season 2 premieres tonight on Food Network at 10 p.m. Eastern, with a new format. Over the five-episode series, the same set of seven chefs will compete week after week until they're whittled down to one winner, who will take home $50,000.
Host Marsh Mokhtari says the chefs on the show have inspired him to upgrade his own culinary techniques and be more adventurous in the kitchen—from properly scoring the fat on a duck breast to preparing sea urchin himself.
The most eye-opening lesson he’s learned?
If you're not sure how to make something, try anyway. "Even if I don't know the right recipe to make a plum reduction for duck breast, I know it has plums in it," Mokhtari says. "I would assume there's a liquid, maybe a red wine—if I have port, I'll put that in—or cranberry juice." Put your own twist on it, and you might end up with a recipe that lasts a lifetime.
When Mokhtari was a child, he and his father tried sushi for the first time at a food court at Harrod's in London. They loved it—so they worked on a fish recipe that replicates the look of sushi, without seaweed, which they didn't have. The recipe, below:
Salmon Roulade
What you'll need:
1 6 oz salmon fillet, skin removed
1 4 oz fillet white fish, such as sea bass
2 Tbsp dill, chopped
1 Tbsp olive oil
2 shallots, chopped
2 garlic cloves, chopped
1 cup heavy cream
Juice from 1 lemon
1 cup white wine
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Parchment paper
Butcher’s twine or string
How to make it:
1. Preheat your oven to 375°F. Place the salmon filet on a piece of parchment paper. Scatter the dill over the salmon and season with salt and pepper. Place the white fish filet in the center of the salmon filet lengthwise.
2. Roll the fish in the parchment so that it looks like a long sushi roll. Tie it off every 2 inches, as you would with a roast. Cut between the tie marks so that it looks like sushi pieces.
3. Place the rolls on a baking sheet and bake until both fish fillets are cooked through, about 35 minutes.
4. As the fish bakes, prepare the sauce. In a small pan, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the shallots and garlic and cook until golden, three to five minutes. Add the cream, lemon juice, and white wine. Season with salt and pepper, to taste. Stir to combine.
5. Remove the fish from the oven, snip the strings, and remove the parchment paper. Plate the fish and drizzle with sauce. Makes 2 servings.
—photo of Mokhtari courtesy of the Food Network
Via: MacGyver Meals With Extreme Chefs Marsh Mokhtari
MacGyver Your Dinner With Extreme Chefs Marsh Mokhtari
When I cook in the humble kitchen in my apartment—which has no dishwasher—I sometimes feel like I'm really roughing it. And for those of you whipping up dinner after dinner in a cramped bachelor pad, you may feel like there's only one thing standing between you and restaurant-quality chow: counter space.
On Extreme Chef, the Food Network competition show, some of America's most talented chefs are tasked with making four-star quality dishes amid a range of serious environmental and physical challenges, such as torrential downpours and hail storms. They don't even have the luxury of buying ingredients at a market—they dive for fish or locate ingredients on a treasure map.
And that was all just last season. Season 2 premieres tonight on Food Network at 10 p.m. Eastern, with a new format. Over the five-episode series, the same set of seven chefs will compete week after week until they're whittled down to one winner, who will take home $50,000.
Host Marsh Mokhtari says the chefs on the show have inspired him to upgrade his own culinary techniques and be more adventurous in the kitchen—from properly scoring the fat on a duck breast to preparing sea urchin himself.
The most eye-opening lesson he’s learned?
If you're not sure how to make something, try anyway. "Even if I don't know the right recipe to make a plum reduction for duck breast, I know it has plums in it," Mokhtari says. "I would assume there's a liquid, maybe a red wine—if I have port, I'll put that in—or cranberry juice." Put your own twist on it, and you might end up with a recipe that lasts a lifetime.
When Mokhtari was a child, he and his father tried sushi for the first time at a food court at Harrod's in London. They loved it—so they worked on a fish recipe that replicates the look of sushi, without seaweed, which they didn't have. The recipe, below:
Salmon Roulade
What you'll need:
1 6 oz salmon fillet, skin removed
1 4 oz fillet white fish, such as sea bass
2 Tbsp dill, chopped
1 Tbsp olive oil
2 shallots, chopped
2 garlic cloves, chopped
1 cup heavy cream
Juice from 1 lemon
1 cup white wine
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Parchment paper
Butcher’s twine or string
How to make it:
1. Preheat your oven to 375°F. Place the salmon filet on a piece of parchment paper. Scatter the dill over the salmon and season with salt and pepper. Place the white fish filet in the center of the salmon filet lengthwise.
2. Roll the fish in the parchment so that it looks like a long sushi roll. Tie it off every 2 inches, as you would with a roast. Cut between the tie marks so that it looks like sushi pieces.
3. Place the rolls on a baking sheet and bake until both fish fillets are cooked through, about 35 minutes.
4. As the fish bakes, prepare the sauce. In a small pan, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the shallots and garlic and cook until golden, three to five minutes. Add the cream, lemon juice, and white wine. Season with salt and pepper, to taste. Stir to combine.
5. Remove the fish from the oven, snip the strings, and remove the parchment paper. Plate the fish and drizzle with sauce. Makes 2 servings.
—photo of Mokhtari courtesy of the Food Network
Via: MacGyver Your Dinner With Extreme Chefs Marsh Mokhtari
Host A Grilled Pizza Party
The best pizzas in the world come from the wood-fire grills of Naples. Disagree if you like, but Naples began perfecting its pie hundreds of years before Pizza Hut stuffed its first bloated crust. From the wisp of smoke captured in the cheese to the brittle crust running along the belly, Neapolitan pies are entirely unlike their US cousins.
For one thing, they’re lighter in carbohydrates and less saturated with grease, so they’re less likely to make you look like the kind of guy who eats too much delivery. But beyond that, they’re also endlessly versatile and loaded with rich, warm flavor. Whatever you want on your pie—be it lobster and Alfredo sauce or bacon and eggs—you can have it. And so long as you have a grill, you have everything you need to put a Neapolitan spin on your next pizza.
Or better yet, invite over some friends for a legitimate grown-up pizza party. The only trick is that you have to know people who like pizza. That shouldn’t be too tough. Then follow guidelines below.
Ask your guests to bring toppings
Tell every guest to bring one or two toppings. Assign roles if you have to: One friend brings cheese, one brings meat, one brings sauce, and so on. If one of your friends is a vegetarian, put him in charge of the vegetables. The more you have to work with, the more interesting your pies will be.
Think outside the pizza box
The options for the typical delivery pie is limited to a very predictable list of ingredients—sausage, pepperoni, mushrooms, etc. Those are fine options, but you should encourage your guests to dig deeper. Instead of shredded mozzarella, try the fresh stuff or soft goat cheese. Experiment with grilled Brussels sprouts or kale, or give your pie a savory punch with shaved prosciutto. Marinara makes a fine sauce, but try spiking it with bbq sauce or replacing it with fresh-grilled tomato slices.
Bring the dough
Aside from manning the grill and playing crowd control, this is your sole responsibility. For acquiring pizza dough, you have three options: 1. Make it from scratch (recipe below), 2. look for it at your supermarket, or 3. walk into any pizza joint and ask them to sell you some. Option 3 is perhaps the easiest and most reliable. If you’re going to need a big batch, be sure to call ahead of time. Tell them how many people you’re serving, and they’ll help you determine how much you need.
Create a pizza buffet
Begin by grilling the toppings need to be cooked—onions, peppers, uncured meats, etc. Then set all the toppings out on a table next to a bowl of sauce with a ladle in it. There should be enough for every guest to make one pie.
Build and grill your masterpiece
The stone method: If you don’t have a pizza stone, you might consider buying one. Actually you might buy a couple so that one can cool off the grill while the other cooks your pizza. Then pull off a ball of dough, and using a rolling pin or wine bottle, roll it out flat. Spread it over you pizza stone, rub it with sauce, sprinkle on the toppings, and place the stone directly on the hot grates of the grill. If you’re using charcoal, perfect. Your crust will taste almost like it was cooked over a campfire. If you’re using gas, you might consider adding a smoker box filled with wood chips. Close the lid and let it cook about 10 minutes, or until the crust is crisp and the cheese is melted.
The no-stone method: If you don’t have a pizza stone, here’s what you do. First, create warm and cool zones on your grilling surface by banking the coals to one side (if it’s a gas grill, simply turn one burner up and leave the other one low). After you’ve rolled the dough into a pie, rub it with olive oil and drop it on the hot part of the grill, directly over the coals. Let it cook for 30 seconds and then rotate it 45 degrees to create diamond-shaped grill marks. After 30 more seconds, flip the crust and move it to the cool part of the grill, away from the coals. Quickly top it however you like, close the grill, and let it cook for 2 or 3 minutes. Use tongs to rotate it 45 degrees and let it cook for another couple minutes. If you have a pizza peel, use it to slide the pizza off the grill. Now enjoy.
Homemade Pizza Dough
Recipe from Grill This, Not That! By Dave Zinczenko and Matt Goulding
You’ll Need:
1 cup hot water
1 Tbsp sugar or honey
1/2 tsp salt
1 envelope instant yeast
2 1/2 cups flour, plus more for kneading and rolling
How to make it:
1. Combine the water, sugar, and salt in a large bowl and sprinkle with yeast. Allow to sit for 10 minutes while the water activates the yeast.
2. Use a wooden spoon to stir in the flour. When the dough is no longer sticky, place on a cutting board, cover with more flour, and knead for 5 minutes, folding the dough over on itself and using the heel of your hand to push it into the cutting board.
3. Return the dough to the bowl, cover it with plastic wrap, and let it rise at room temperature for at least 90 minutes. It will keep, covered, in the refrigerator for up to 2 days. Makes two 10-inch pies.
Via: Host A Grilled Pizza Party
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