DCFUD

NBC4 sent me this today, which is kind of funny because our Guest Blogger Cara Murren just sent us an article on the same topic.  Must be a hot topic.

-JAY

————————–

NBC4:

Chef Michael Kiss gives free cooking classes on Tuesday evenings at the cafe (upstairs) at the Arlington Wholefoods Market.

I recently attended two of Michael’s classes – beans, and greens.  The greens class was interesting because the great Snowgasm was coming and Wholefoods was out of most greens, including the dandelion greens featured in one of the recipes.  Michel substited frisee for dandelion greens, and even asked a trivia question about frisee, which apparently is from the same plant as chicory.

The next few cooking classes at the Arlington Wholefoods are:

• Tuesday, March 16th, Irish Eyes Are Smiling, 7pm

  We love good Irish food, especially now!  The truth is, though, it can be a bit heavy. Join us for a look at amazing Irish favorites with emerald colored nutrition glasses. Even a leprechaun doesn’t need luck to eat healthy everyday!

• Tuesday, March 23rd: Hello, Spring, 7pm

  We made it folks, now it is time to celebrate! Let’s shed the heavy recipes and brighten our palettes with light and fresh ingredients. Spring forward and take your seasonal eating to a new level.

• Tuesday, March 30: Cook Like A Chef, 7pm

  Let us help you look at food and the act of cooking like a chef! Learn how to “read” a recipe and interpret what it means. This week, we’ll investigate the 5 ingredients you need to make all of your dishes taste like they’re from the best restaurant in town.

Here is one of his recipes from the class on beans:

Ragout of Cannelini beans and tomatoes:

• 1 can or 2 cups cooked Cannelini beans
• 2 Tbs. Olive Oil
• 1 cup grape tomatoes
• 1/2 medium red onion
• 1 clove of minced garlic
• 2 Tbs. capers
• 2 oz. white whine
• ¼ tsp dried oregano
• Salt and pepper to taste.

In a large sauté pan over medium heat add the olive oil, garlic, tomatoes and slowly cook the whole mixture until the tomatoes start to burst and the onions are translucent.  Add the wine and let mixture reduce by half.  Add the capers, beans, oregano and heat through.  Taste and adjust seasoning.  Great as a hearty stew or served over pasta.

-JAY

Call for Artists: ‘The Art of Food‘

Arlington Public Library’s Art Committee is seeking artists from the Metro DC region who create art related to Food and Food Sustainability, for a juried exhibition April 2 – April 30, 2010.

This exhibition will be held in conjunction with the Library’s annual Arlington Reads program. The book chosen for Arlington Reads 2010 is The Memory of Old Jack by Wendell Berry – the musings of an elderly Kentucky farmer on the “truth and integrity of the land.” Inspired by the book, we are looking for art that uses food as a theme or element, or explores the ideas of “You are what you eat,” what we eat, where/how we eat, who/what eats, the nature of food, where it comes from, how it sustains us/the land, etc.

• Application Deadline: March 26, 2010
• Download the prospectus.

Artists are encouraged to use recycled material in the creation of their art, but this is not a requirement. Artwork may be 2-D, 3-D or photographic in nature. This opportunity is open to local artists who, if selected, are able to hand deliver/pick-up their work at Arlington Central Library.

Find out more about Art at the Arlington Public Library.

It is still bloody freezing here in Atlanta (majorly pissing off the part of me who pretty explicitly moved here on the premise that the winters are shorter and less cold), so I have been increasingly in need of warm comfort food. I am also extremely lazy and a bit cheap, so I wanted comfort food I could make all by myself with minimal cost or effort. My rice cooker, which has just re-emerged from a newly reorganized cupboard, is usually a good source of easy, cheap food, and so I thought of a dish synonymous with comfort in so many cultures: rice and beans. I grew up around a considerable Caribbean influence (despite being a bit of a whitey from Northwest DC), and so, while I do love some good traditional red beans and rice, my version of choice is a bit more tropical: what gets called “Rice and Peas.”

The more traditional version my friends’ moms and grandmothers make is easy enough, but I say that true genius is the ability to take “easy” and make it downright slothful. In other words, I am declaring myself a genius due to my extreme laziness. I use canned peas, mostly pre-ground spices, and a rice cooker instead of dried, whole, and two pots plus a fry pan. Best of all, it works out beautifully.

Here’s how you can make this fabulous base to any meal, and add a pretty and healthy accompaniment too:

2 cups rice
1 can coconut milk
1 cup dashi or chicken stock
1 can pigeon (Gunga) peas
(Kale, optional)
Allspice
Turmeric
Celery salt
(Cayenne, optional if you’re that much of a wuss, but you really should use some)
Olive oil

Throw your rice, coconut milk, allspice, celery salt and turmeric into a rice cooker, stir, and turn it on. You have to use your own judgment about how much of the spices to use, but I use a good bit (maybe 1.5 tsp each of turmeric and allspice, and a half of celery salt). After about 10 minutes, add the peas and stir, re-covering. When the timer pops, open it up and add the stock. Press the lever down to cook again. When it finishes cooking this time, let it click back over to the “warm” cycle, and toss in your kale to steam. When the kale’s as soft as you like, you’re ready to go.

Mind you: the version I grew up eating (prepared by an old Haitian friend of the family who is a lot like an extra grandmother in the sense of making sure we were always full of delicious and fattening foods) doesn’t use stock – and the result is rice that’s a bit, well, al dente. I add the stock to my version because I know that this texture can be challenging (or appalling) to anyone not raised on it, and plus I think the extra flavor is a nice bonus.

Serve in a bowl, drizzled with olive oil and cayenne.

So easy! And delicious. The recipe scales to as much as your rice cooker can hold (just do some multiplication), and keeps very well, so I often make this as a staple for the week and just add freshly steamed kale, fried eggs, steam fish or really any ‘main’ to it as I go.

– MAW

This is the sequel to this article.  Here are a few more profiles of the teams that tried out in DC.

Paul and Antonio are an example of a team where it is obvious which team members are the front and back of the house.  Paul came off as very serious and said that they “Are looking to display professionalism and a fun atmosphere while using proper (French) techniques to create simple and spectacular food.  This would be farm to table, sustainable, and non GMO, with a Charlie palmer atmosphere and attention to detail.”   Antonio was very personable and positive and described himself as having an “electric personality” and said he would “endear himself to the customer, and has an understanding of what it is like to be in the patron’s shoes.”

Carmen would be the front of house and Chris would be back of house, although both are chefs.  Their six year old son Ashton is in the picture with them.  It si their dream to have a restaurant, and they want to give back to the community.  They have an Asian fusion concept and their signature dish would be miso salmon.

JB and David are friends.  JB would be front of house and is active duty military, while david would be back of house.  JB said that they “work hard and want to make money doing it.”  They are both Texans, and their concept would be mixed-region barbeque with various sauce options.  Their signature dish would be brisket.

Burt (front of house) and James (back of house) are good friends, and they had a good vibe about them.  Friends introduced them too each other since they have similar goals and interests.  Burt was going to open a restaurant called “the Big Easy” and James was working at Taste of Carolina on U Street.  Their concept is sophisticated southern/creole, and their signature dishes would be “Millionaire Mac N’ Cheese” and banana pudding cupcakes.

Jen (front of house) and Caitlin (back of house) are roommates who have worked in restaurants 16 years. (Maybe they mean in total?)  Their concept is home style comfort food (sort of like Paula Deen), and their signature dish is chicken a la king.

Dianne (front of house) and Scott (back of house) are engaged.  Their concept is contemporary fine dining with a twist.  Scott specializes in seafood and various meats, and their signature dish would be a version of surf and turf.  he certainly seemed confident in his cooking expertise.

CW (front of house) and Emilie are friends.  She said “He watched my bipolar cat for a week while I was away so I have to do this for him.”   Their concept is a soul food cafe, and they think it would be fun to do it together.

I stopped by the casting call for CBS News’ 24 Hour Restaurant Battle.  I had originally planned on trying out but the friend I would have been partnered with got a last-minute day job, and couldn’t attend. Oooops.    So, my friend Amy Melrose of Free in DC suggested I just go down there and cover it for DCFUD.  She even met up with me for a little while and got pulled in by the Nyema/Tommy tractor beam.

I spoke to over a dozen teams, so I’ll break this into a couple of articles and cover some of the teams.  I was definitely interested in the kinds of people and teams that were trying out for this show and a chance to run a restaurant together.  There had to be an existing relationship (friends, family, etc.) between the team members.  I asked them if they have a restaurant concept and why they wanted to do this reality show.  Every team said having a restaurant was their dream.

Mauricio and Chef Jose Luiz Molina are two brothers who are in the restaurant business; Mauricio works for Busboys & Poets, and Jose Luis works for Kington Hotels.  Jose would be the back of the house and Mauricio would be the front.  They are Bolivian, and have a top secret concept for Latin American Fusion.  They grabbed my attention immediately since they seemed friendly and approachable.   I spoke to them first, and they did turn out to have a very friendly and comfortable vibe. They were a lot of fun to hangout with – very cool guys.

Lauren (back of house) and Maryam (front of house) were the next team I approached because they seemed vibrant and positive.  They are friends who met in college, and recently discussed a “joke concept” for a restaurant while exploring Spain and Portugal.  They were one of the few teams that didn’t have a “fusion” concept and didn’t use the phrase “with a  twist.”  Their concept is trendy mid-scale American, and would appeal to families.  A signature dish: meatloaf muffins AKA portable meatloaf.  Got ketchup frosting? Mmmmm.

Nyema and Tommy are friends and are very friendly and charismatic – they just draw you in, and this is the table Amy was at the whole time she was there.   I guessed correctly that larger than life and very expressive Tommy would be front of the house.  Nyema joked that Tommy is the “hot girl” on the team, and he added that he “sashays something fierce.”   Concept: American Food with French and African American accents.  Signature dish: Fillet Mignon with sweet potato puree, shitaki mushrooms, and a sweet potato twill.

Braddock and Tanya are dating, and Tanya and Dan are brother and sister.  Tanya would be front of house, Dan would be back of house, and Braddock could be either front or back.  They were originally going to apply as two teams that both included Tanya, but consolidated into one team.  They all work together at Costello’s in Kingston, PA.  Their food concept is new age soul food with an astrological twist in both the food and layout of the restaurant.  Pisces anyone?

Sandra and Silvia (front of house) Baird are Australian identical twins who spent part of their childhoods in Toledo (Spain, not Ohio).  They speak fluent Spanish and their signature dish is paella Valenciana.  I teased them about the matching outfits.  They had a lot of presence – they were outgoing, radiant, and in stereo!   They gave me a tip about trying the “dietary restriction” menu at P.F. Changs.  I know….Ray’s gonna bust on me for that one…but seriously, have you HAD those grease-dripping tempura green beans at PFC?

-JAY

Jon Wye is way too thin to be as food obsessed as he is.  The man who brought you the Waffle Buckle (which he only has one left to sell) and Pirate Chef shirt, belt, and apron now has a shirt where aliens are eating the Capitol (reminiscent of To Serve Man) and he’s launching it with a special deal.  Jon is a regular at street fairs.

-JAY

“This cutie cute blue blob monster doesn’t want to hurt anyone.  He’s just taking his kids on a little intergalactic camping trip. In the morning daddy blob monster surprises the kids with Space Cakes (Translation: Pancakes), mixing the batter out of the dome of the US capitol, and using the Washington Monument as kindling.
With the new BREAKFAST AT THE CAPITOL t-shirt we are offering a ONE WEEK SPECIAL ONLY.  Buy the BREAKFAST AT THE CAPITOL t-shirt in either a men’s or womens, and you will receive a FREE 2009 Gooey DC t-shirt.  If we run out of your size you will receive a $10 off coupon for your next purchase.  (fine print below… I will accept first borns as payment)

Offer ends February 27th at Midnight!  HURRY!  AHHHHHHHHHHHH! (creating drama)

Cheers,

Jon Wye”

I’ve been a bad füddie. I’ve been working too much and being extremely lazy and cooking easy, no-effort-required crap for dinner. Finally, I heard the cries of my angry cookware and downtrodden stomach, begging me to spare them another night of steamed vegetables with yet another baked yam. Admittedly, the lack of yams at the farmers market this week may have helped. So, inviting mystery and the one-armed-bandit of Googling for recipes back in to our hearts, it’s time for another episode of … Adventures in Cooking Random Things I Found at the Farmers Market!

Today’s journey begins with:

2 pink yautia
1 poblano
A large thumb-sized (ok, two thumbs) hunk of fresh ginger
Cream (I think I used about a half cup, but your guess is as good as mine)
Hon-dashi
Fish sauce
Sriracha.

These brave ingredients undoubtedly began life somewhere more picturesque than their end in my cheap crockery, but their destiny was, after all, deliciousness and not beauty. I am absolutely not writing the rest of this recipe like that. Clearly I need to watch less TNT, whose knowledge of Drama seems to be catching.

The professor was basically no help on recipes, except to say that yautia cooks like taro, so I just made this up based on what I had. Here’s the dish:

Slice the poblano and start it caramelizing. Peel and cut the yautia into chunks, and boil it in dashi until soft (about 15-20 minutes). While that’s going, dice about 3/4 of the ginger, adding most of it to the poblanos pan about 2/3 through caramelizing. Toss the rest into the boiling yautia.

When the caramelizing is done – if you’re clever, this will be just as the yautia is done too – add some cream to the pan of poblanos and ginger, removing it from direct heat (you want the cream to get warm and absorb the flavors, not cook or scald). Drain the yautia, reserving maybe a half cup of the liquid. Put the yautia into a bowl and pour the cream-poblano mixture over it. Mash.

It should be a little dry right now, which is why you kept some of your dashi. To said reserved dashi, add a good bit of fish sauce and as much sriracha as you like. Also, mash your remaining ginger into the mix (I used a garlic press – you really want the juice!). Now, stir that into your mash to get the right texture…if it’s still too dry, you should have kept more dashi. Add diluted fish sauce instead. And probably more sriracha.

I will be the first to admit, it kinda looks like cat food, and by itself it’s not all that flavorful – unless you really went overboard on the fish sauce and sriracha. But the nice, subtle taste, served with a fried egg on top and a good sprinkle of soy sauce, is actually quite good. And, more importantly, I think it has real potential. Should I plan ahead at some point, this would be a really fantastic side for something powerfully-sauced, like steak-au-poivre or perhaps even a masaman curry. Or you could deep fry balls of the stuff to dip in spicy sauces…

-MAW



Received this email today:

-JAY

———

A new series titled FOOD WARS will be airing this Spring on the Travel Channel. Our host will be visiting cities around the country and learning about their iconic food dishes. Next up on our food journey: Washington, DC for the “Jumbo Slice” of pizza. If you’re a loyal customer of PIZZA MART we want to see you there on Friday, February 12th.

^{If you prefer your “Jumbo Slice” be from JUMBO SLICE then come and show your support there on Saturday, February 13th. No matter which side of the fence you may fall, we want you all together as these two restaurants face off on Sunday, February 14th (location TBD, but will be in Adams Morgan)!}

Please contact foodfancasting@gmail.com for more information on supporting either of these pizzajoints on camera!