I love to eat!

Guiness-braised Corned Beef

Or as I like to refer to it…ultimate Irish Stew.

Potatoes

Carrots

Celery

Cabbage

Corned Beef Brisket (mine’s the tip cut, around 3 lbs)

Corning/Pickling Spice

1 can of Guiness

Enough beef stock to cover

This is really difficult recipe.  I mean, you have to pay attention.  First thing you do is put everything in a crock pot, set it to “Low”, dump in the liquids, put on the top and walk away for a few hours.  Go sing a song, or kiss that person you always wanted to kiss.  Kick a field goal.  Iron some pants.  Chop down a tree.  Do the Charleston.  3 hours later, come back and eat, preferably with some crusty bread…

South Texas Mesquite…

South Texas Mesquite…


Grilled Stuffed Pork Tenderloin

Grilled two of my signature tenderloins yesterday, and while they tasted great, I still have a bit of work to do.

First, the logistics of the dish:

2 nice, Carlton Farms pork tenderloins, butterflied.

1/2 c. of Gorgonzola crumbles

2 c. of Spinach (fresh)

Olive Oil

Balsamic Vinegar

Salt, to taste

Pepper, to taste

Basically, i just butterflied the cuts, mixed up some Balsamic and Olive Oil, and let the tenderloins sit in that for about an hour or so.  After that, I split the spinach and blue cheese between the two, rolled them up, and secured them with bamboo skewers.

Slap them on a hot grill for about 7 minutes a side (3 sides!) and you’ll be happy.

Unfortuantely, I would suggest not using Gorgonzola, or if you do, not salting the pork beforehand, as it came out a bit too salty for my tastes.  Other than that, it’s a great and quick way to enjoy tenderloin.

Also, don’t be afraid to cook your pork slightly pink - I was raised for years with the idea that undercooked pork housed Trichinosis and I’d die if it wasn’t cooked through (my mother was a good scare artist).  Knowing where my meat comes from, and the process it goes through from farm to table allows me the ability to not worry about these sanitation issues.

Plus, slightly pink pork tenderloin is absolutely mind-blowing - a completely different texture on the tongue than fully-cooked…

Still though, I prefer it smoked…

Quasi-review...Thai Spoon, Hawthorne

MattO and I got some take-out from Thai Spoon last night.  Pretty barebones, but mad tasty and mad simple food.  MattO rocked some fiery Pad Kee Mao, I got some spicy yakisobe (I know, not really Thai) but it was hot.  Tofu is good - not like Chaba or Pad Thai Kitchen where there’s a good crust, but solid nonetheless.  Noodles and sauce were tasty, but man, the only veggies in my stir fry were red and green peppers.  A little variety would’ve been nice.

Also got some Crab Rangoons (again, not Thai) because I’m a fat kid and I like them.  So shut it.  They were standard…

All in all, for 8 bucks an entree, not a bad deal.  Next, we’re gonna try the lebanese place, Riyadh.  Mad foxes in that joint, son!

Just bought a flat of Mt. Hood strawberries and I’ve already killed 2 pints in less than 12 hours…
Something about these melts my brain - the weird stem structure, the absence of toughness or “crunch” that you get with (crappier) California strawberries, or just the ridiculously smooth texture…
Regardless, they’re here, which means I’ll have the strawberry skitters for about 2 weeks.

Just bought a flat of Mt. Hood strawberries and I’ve already killed 2 pints in less than 12 hours…

Something about these melts my brain - the weird stem structure, the absence of toughness or “crunch” that you get with (crappier) California strawberries, or just the ridiculously smooth texture…

Regardless, they’re here, which means I’ll have the strawberry skitters for about 2 weeks.


ClarkLewis

Last week I had the pleasure of eating at Clarklewis with Missy for her going-away dinner (and a reason to finally get to a fine-dining venue in this city).

Let’s just say that…even though the place has new ownership and has taken some hits since it’s heyday of 2006…this place was fucking amazing.

The appetizers, the pasta, and our main courses (Pork Shoulder with cracked mustard sauce and a Pine-Nut, lemon roasted half-chicken) were off the goddammed hook.

The crowd is a little Pearl-y, as if they’re slumming it, but the place itself was ridiculously good.

Next up?  Beast, Nostrana and Le Pigeon - even if I have to advertise a date on Craigslist just to get someone to go out to dinner with me…

Mindblowing Rib Rub

So we had a nice little bbq for Memorial Day, and all the food served was prepped on the grill.  This is the rub recipe that I put on the spare ribs.  Smoke spare ribs (or baby backs if that’s your fancy) for 2-3 hours over mesquite chips, or until the meet pulls about 1/4 inch from the bone…

1/2 c. of brown sugar

3 Tbsp Paprika

1 Tbsp. Coarse Sea Salt

1/2 Tbsp. Black Pepper

3 Bay Leaves, chopped

1-2 Tbsp. Dried Oregano

1 tsp. Cumin

1 tsp. Chili Powder (I used Chipotle Chili Powder)

1 tsp. Allspice

1 tsp. Cayenne

Other things I cooked on the grill yesterday:

Asparagus (olive oil, sea salt, pepper)

Corn (in husk, soaked)

Red Hots (open bag, put on grill)

White Hots (fly from upstate NY, open bag, put on grill)

Hamburgers (80% ground beef, Montreal Steak Seasoning, BBQ Sauce, Pepper Jack Cheese)