Snacking on Boing Boing

Scary how time flies...here's a fresh installment of weird and exotic food stuff from Boing Boing.

Arts:

One trend this time around is unusual art. For example, sculptures by Jodie Carey made partially of royal icing. What's so weird about that? Carey uses delicate flowers made of the stuff to decorate images of human bones. And she's made five arrangement out of newspaper flowers dyed with blood, tea and coffee. Tasty.

Prefer flesh to bones? Then you'll enjoy Victoria Reynolds' lush paintings of raw meat. Stylistically, these babies look as though they should be hanging in the Louvre. Thematically, they look as though they should be on the walls at your local butcher shop. If you're lucky enough to have a local butcher shop.

A more wasteful example is a huge statue of a woman made from peaches. It's to promote a skin-care company. I bet the message will be less inspiring when she turns into a sodden, rotting mess. Same goes for a more abstract piece in which artist Stefan Sagmeister covered a really large wall with bananas.

This one is also edible (although it doesn't look it), but it's art nonetheless. It's an R2D2 cake! And an inedible version of the little guy made out of a beer barrel.

And then there's the video of the mostly naked guy wearing a horse's head and cooking wild mushrooms. Must be seen to be believed.

Science:

Some mad genetic scientists went messing around with onions in an effort to make them "tear-free."  All I have to say to them is: "You guys are wimps." Oh, and it's my understanding that the volatile compounds responsible for our tears have antioxidant properties. Luckily, this brilliant innovation won't make it to the market for 10 or 15 years. By which point a global water crisis will have far outweighed the suffering caused by alliums (or is it allia?).

Mastered the art of smashing beer cans on your head? Then you should learn how to melt a beer bottle in the microwave. Apparently a blow torch is also required, but just to "get things started."

Cooking

I think it may actually be more difficult to follow than a traditional recipe, but perhaps visual learners will enjoy this diagram for preparing chicken with beer.

Kid Stuff

Tic-Tac-Toast. You press the little gadget into a piece of bread and it creates a tic-tac-toe board for condiments.

This is one of my faves. It's a TV commercial for a game called "Pie Face" which involves -- you guessed it -- getting smacked in the face by a mechanized "pie." The commercial encourages youngsters to ask their parents for whipped cream to use in the game. Yeah right!

So much for not playing with your food!

This Week's Farm Share: 2/28/08

Usually my Pete's Greens farm share arrives every Wednesday, but this week, due to a snowstorm, it came on Thursday. I swung by the pick-up point on my way to meet friends for a birthday party at American Flatbread.

Here's what we got:

A very pretty, unusually shaped loaf of Elmore Mountain Bread with blue cheese sprinkles
A big jar of crystallized local honey
Maplebrook Farm mozzerella
A bag of local flour
Lots of root veggies...haven't looked through them yet

And by the way...next time you go to Flatbread, I recommend their home-brewed North Star Saison...very nice.

Chocolate and Scallops? Yeah Baby!

Didn't have the romantic, Valentine's Day dinner of your dreams? You can make up for it on March 5.

On that evening, Chef Aaron Millon of Montpelier's Restaurant Phoebe is teaming up with Nutty Steph -- the famous granola maker who recently added a chocolate factory to her business -- to present a 7-course chocolate pairing menu.

What the heck is a chocolate pairing? Think cocoa-dusted sea scallops with a coconut and potato "pave" and a rich elk steak with a chocolate-hazelnut glaze and sweet potato and cranberry risotto. Talk about swoon-worthy...and that's just two of the courses!

Alongside the savory stuff, of course, is dessert: hot "triple chocolate" with espresso crème, and white chocolate ice cream with passion fruit foam.

The evening promises to be playful, delicious and sensual, and completely out of the ordinary. I made a reservation as soon as I heard about it, so if you attend, make sure to stop by and say hello. I'll be the girl with the huge, goofy grin on her face...But I might not be the only one.

The meal is $55 a person, or $80 if you want the optional wine pairing, which includes five matching quaffs. Open seating begins at 5 p.m. Call 262-3500 for reservations.

 

 

Contest Winning Poems from Mary's Restaurant's at the Inn at Baldwin Creek

Each year, Mary's Restaurant at the Inn at Baldwin Creek runs a romantic poetry contest leading up to Valentine's Day. Poems may be of any style or meter, but must be composed at the restaurant -- no crib sheets allowed. Owner Linda Harmon says that they typically receive nearly 200 entries. Whew! Usually Author Chris Bohjalian wades through the entires and plucks out the finest offerings, but this year he was unavailable. The honor went to a regular customer, instead.

According to Chef-Owner Doug Mack, some years the poems lean towards the hot & heavy, other years they're super sweet and romantic. How about this year? Mack noticed that many of the love poems were addressed to food, rather than to other people. Check out the 2nd and 3rd prize winners, for examples.

 

Here are the top three. I transcribed them from handwritten versions as written (with ampersands, punctuation, spelling exactly as is).

#1
You Weren't Supposed to Be
by Chad Whittemore of Burlington

I never thought I'd meet you and then
I saw you there
You had an amazing smile and a special
kind of flare
Your eyes were true & honest
Your heart an open book
With each word you whispered you
had me by a hook
We took it slow and as you know
our love it surely grew
Without a doubt you know without
my love for you is true
I looked 35 years to find the love
I have with you today
To think I thought the love
we share would never come
my way.
I said back then a love
like ours wasn't meant
to be
But there you stood &
Stole my heart & you &
I became we!

#2
Ode to Garlic Soup
by Hillary Sherman & Erik Van Hauer of Burlington

I'm here with someone else you see
It simply isn't meant to be
but every time you touch my lip
I find I crave for one more sip

You're tickling deep inside my chest
a feeling that I find the best
You're absolutely tops to spoon
and when you're around I always swoon.

I may be heading home with him
but he knows where these lips have been
When we grow close he doth recoil
At poignant scent of garlic oil

When you put my love to the test
It's garlic soup that I love the best

#3
Untitled
by Catherine LaBarre of Bristol

The roses were orange
the olives were Greek
there's nothing we enjoy more
than the Inn at Baldwin Creek

Cake from Sunflower Bakery

After I mentioned her home business in one of my articles, "Party On...Consciously," Sunflower Bakery owner Janet Makaris dropped off a gorgeous cake at the Seven Days office. It's made with spelt flour with a layer of lemon curd (one of my favorite things) and maple fondant on top. And as you can see, was decorated with a beautiful flower.

We'd never had a cake made with a non-wheat flour before -- Janet specializes in baking with alternative flours and sweeteners -- and my husband mentioned his surprised by how light it is. He associates spelt with dense, nutritious breads.

The fondant was very sweet, but the tang of the lemon curd provided balance. It was decadent so we had small pieces, and I can't wait to have another one tonight!

Food Articles From Slate.com

Thought these articles from Slate might be of interest...

~ Is Frozen Orange Juice Concentrate Better for the Environment (I hope not)

~ How Hungry is Hillary Clinton, by the sassy Mimi Sheraton. I wonder if anyone has done the same kind of analysis with Obama?

This Week's Farm Share: 2/20/08

Since I get an amazing, year-round farm share through Pete's Greens "Good Eats" CSA, I thought it might interest some folks to hear about the products that I get each week (and maybe even a little about what I do with 'em). The contents of the share changes every time, and it is varied enough to dispel the notion that it's impossible to eat seasonally while living in Vermont's cold climate.

This week, I got:

A whole round of Jasper Hill's Constant Bliss
A big bag of frozen strawberries
dried local cranberries (really good)
Oat & Barley bread
A dozen eggs
banana fingerling potatoes
onions
beets
carrots

Béquet Caramels

Today, while shopping for lunch at the Fresh Market on Pine Street in Burlington, I discovered a brand of caramels I hadn't seen before. Called Béquet, the sweets are made in Montana and come in flavors such as maple, salt-chocolate, "soft" and "chewy."

I opted for a trio: chipotle, espresso and salt. All three were delightful: soft, buttery and sweet, with just the right amount of chile, coffee and salt. I highly recommend these to caramel fans.

If you wanna learn more about the company, check out this article.

* The photo is from the Béquet website

Twizzlers vs. Red Vines

I owe our awesome, locally owned video store a bunch of money -- more than I'm currently willing to pony up. So, after years of swearing that I never would, I got a membership card to the evil, corporate video store. You know which one I mean. Most of my films arrive via Netflix anyway, but sometimes D. and I want to plow through a whole season of some TV show without interruption, and making a few trips to the video store is part of the deal.

The other day, while after a few discs of LOST, I noticed a package of Red Vines, a red, twisty, rope-like candy I've never seen before. My immediate thought was: "How do these compare to Twizzlers?" I bought a package of each...

Red Vines

Ingredients: Corn syrup, wheat flour, citric acid, artificial flavor, red 40
Packaging: A wax-coated paper tray with a plastic covering. The retro script is reminiscent of comic books or old horror film. Red, white and blue.
Appearance: Rough texture, with a matte finish. Slightly twistier.
Aroma: Very mild and sweet. When you stick your nose inside the package there's a rather nauseating smell, but maybe that's from the paper they use in the packaging?
Mouthfeel: Slightly rough against the tongue and densely chewy. A bit sticky between the teeth. Takes some work to bite off a piece.
Flavor: Sweet, fake fruit with a tiny sour note at the end. I find the final flavor a little off.

Twizzlers 

Ingredients: Corn syrup, wheat flour, sugar, cornstarch, palm oil, salt, artificial flavor, glycerin, citric acid, potassium sorbate (preservative), red 40, soy lecithin.
Packaging: All plastic, pretty generic script. Also red, white and blue.
Appearance: Completely smooth and shiny. Bottom is flatter than top.
Aroma: Sweeter and fake fruitier.
Mouthfeel: Smooth and easy to bite into. Dense, but not as sticky.
Flavor: Fake fruit and sweetness that grows stronger as you chew. Stronger pseudo-fruit flavor on the finish.

Overall, I like the Twizzlers a little better than the Red Vines, not because I find them delicious but because they lack a flavor note that I found unpleasant. It's the lesser of two artificially-flavored evils, I guess.

Perhaps my familiarity with Twizzlers is skewing the results, although I didn't really grow up eating 'em, and they've never been one of my favorite candies (I'm a Nerds fan from way back, though).

A Must(ard) Read...

Funny NYT bit on mustard a couple days ago. I adore condiments and have a soft spot for mustard in particular, so I was quite amused.

Need more mustard? Check out the website for the Mount Horeb Mustard Museum!

Want some pickles with your mustard? Here's another Bruni condiment post...

(Are pickles a condiment? My sister, brother and I eat 'em like they're the main course!)

What's Your Comfort Food?

Last night, I got takeout from Big Fatty's so that my sweetie and I could relax and not cook (and watch LOST). As I drove home with the smell of smoked meat making my nostrils tingle and my stomach growl, I tried to figure out why I love barbecue so damn much, and why I find it so comforting.

It's not something I associate with childhood or traveling. My only recollection of eating BBQ regularly is from when I went to UMass Amherst, and my dad and I would always stop at Bub's BBQ on the way back to Vermont. In fact, he often told me that he was only willing to pick me up because on each trip he got to sample ribs or chicken and their collection of all-you-can-eat sides. Thanks dad!

Anyway, I haven't yet solved the mystery of why 'cue is on my list of top 10 comfort foods, but here's the list itself (in no particular order):

~ Smoked meat with collard greens.
~ Potatoes in any way, shape or form.
~ Beef pho with lots of herbs and chile sauce.
~ Chicken livers sautéed in butter.
~ Numerous varieties of homemade soup made with my own stock. Like cabbage, kielbasa                 potato and white bean with some dill and paprika. Or borscht with a big dollop of sour cream.
~ Baked beans with hot dogs and melted cheddar cheese. I only use kosher or gourmet dogs.
~ Tom Ka soup: a coconut milk base scented with lemongrass. Delightful.
~ Braised meats with fruity sauces, such as pork belly with cider.
~ St. Patrick's Day dinner: corned beef, cabbage, potatoes simmered with pickling spices and served with tons of butter, mustard and horseradish.
~ Certain pasta dishes. Specifically homemade mac & cheese made with a roux and mountains of cheddar, spaghetti with really big meatballs, and lasagna. (When I  was a kid, I would have included Ramen noodles prepared with frozen peas and corn, with the flavor packet added in the beginning so as to best penetrate the noodles -- they say to add it at the end, but I was a rebellious child. I haven't eaten this in 8 or 9 years).

What are yours? (You don't have to list 10!)

Vegan Treats at City Market

A couple of weeks ago, I noticed a duo of products at City Market that I hadn't seen before: raw, vegan "egg salad" and "tuna" salad. At the time, I was seeking mass quantities of comforting cooked potatoes, so I abstained.

This morning, I noticed a some new products from the same company, Vermont Fiddle Heads, so I decided to try 'em. I came back to the office with a bag of raw spice cookies (dehydrated, not cooked) and balls of Super Mint Fudge. Both sweets are gluten-free and dairy-free.

As an omnivore who luxuriates in butter, cheese and cream from small, locally-owned farms, and who enjoys cooked products such as gingerbread cake and apple crisp, I'll admit that my palate may not be well suited to judging what might taste delicious to someone who abstains from such items. With that in mind, I tried a piece of the fudge.

The soft, dark brown ball felt soft between my fingers, and I resisted the urge to play with it as if it were Play-Doh. The aroma was dominated by mint extract, which made my sinuses feel nice when I inhaled. Like a more pleasant, edible version of Vicks VapoRub.

After biting into the ball, I was surprised to find it quite chunky -- seemingly with nut pieces and cacao nibs. The flavor had little in common with the product that I think of as fudge -- a smooth, creamy, sugar-y dessert -- but it was not unpleasant, and is certainly much healthier.

The sticky spice cookie was also dark brown but studded with nut bits. It had a mildly spicy aroma.  The most interesting thing about the cookie's flavor was the fact that every bite was a little different. One had more salt, another had a bitter edge -- perhaps from a piece of citrus zest. The spices were detectable, but not overpowering. 

Both tasted fine, but would I choose to eat them just for the pleasure of it? Maybe not. When I want what I consider to be a healthy snack, I often eat a handful of mixed nuts and dried fruit, fresh fruit with a piece of artisan cheese or some olives, all of which I love. Nix the artisan cheese and they're all vegan, gluten-free and lactose-free, too. But not all raw. And definitely not local.

On the rare occasion that I opt for something sweet, it has nothing to do with health. It's all about living a voluptuous, sensual life. To me that means downing an eclair, or something similarly decadent, every couple of weeks.

But if you're a vegan proponent of raw food, and enjoy slightly sweet snacks that you don't have to prepare yourself, I bet that these will be right up your alley!      

Recipe: Steak with Cherry Port Sauce

Steak with Cherry Port Sauce

Serves 2

Sauce:
Butter
A shallot, minced
2 cloves garlic, minced
A branch of rosemary, washed
Port
A handful of dried cherries
salt and pepper to taste

Meat:
1 prime, dry-aged steak
salt
pepper
olive oil

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

Melt the butter in a small saucepan over medium heat. Add the shallot and sweat (cook until translucent, but not brown). Then add the garlic and do the same. Add the branch of rosemary and cook, stirring gently, for about a minute. Pour in some port -- I used a $25 bottle. Save the really expensive stuff for drinking and don't touch the super cheap stuff -- I think I probably added around a cup. Then add a handful of dried cherries. Reduce heat to low and simmer until reduced to around 1/4 cup. Take off the heat and discard rosemary.

While the sauce is simmering, pat the steak dry and sprinkle each side with salt and pepper. Heat a cast iron pan over medium high heat until very hot. Add oil, and when the oil begins to shimmer, add the steak. Cook until the first side is deep brown and flip. Place the pan in the preheated oven. My very thick (nearly 2 inch?) NY Strip took about 10 minutes in the oven.

When done to your liking, remove the steak from the pan and set it in a warm place to rest. Place the pan over medium heat and add the cherry port sauce, scraping to incorporate any browned bits clinging to the pan. When the pan is deglazed, whisk in around a tablespoon of cold butter (called mounting the sauce). Add salt and pepper to taste. Remove from heat.

When the steak has rested for 10 minutes, slice it, giving alternate slices to each diner (that way, nobody misses out on the best bits). Top with cherry sauce.

I served this with crème fraîche mashed potatoes and a mesclun salad topped with toasted almonds, blue cheese, avocado and apple in a sherry vinaigrette.

My Valentine's Day Dinner

Because my sweetie cooks for a living, I thought it would be nice to make him dinner for V-day. Here's what I made:

~ Prime, dry-aged New York strip, rare, with a rosemary-scented port, shallot and dried cherry sauce.

~ Crème fraîche mashed potatoes with a tiny bit of celeriac thrown in for good measure.

~ Vermont Butter & Cheese crottina

~ We were too full to eat it, but a mesclun salad with toasted Marcona almonds, apples, avocado, Bayley Hazen blue cheese and a sherry vinaigrette. That's the salad pre-apples and avocado.

~ Mirabelles Napoleans and Eclairs for dessert

My mashed potatoes were a little lumpy, but the steak came out just as I hoped, and everything tasted really good. I'll post the port sauce recipe tomorrow.

What did you eat for Valentine's Day?

Dating and Dietary Differences: And a Poll

On my first dinner date with my now-husband -- at Burlington's Smokejacks -- I felt something I'd never felt with anyone previously: a sense of culinary kismet. As we poured over the menu, discussing which dishes appealed to us, we found that we got worked up over the same things. So we ordered them all and shared. I still remember how my half of the barely seared tuna atop cucumber "noodles" tasted. And the smoked pork chop. And the duck.

Sharing food is surely the sexiest way to dine, unless you're in the privacy of your own home and can pull off a blindfolded tasting a la Mostly Martha. (That's a very fuzzy still of the film's sexiest moment).

Later that evening we wandered along the waterfront holding hands. And then we kissed on the porch swing in Battery Park. A little more than a year later, I wrote wedding vows that centered on the meaningfulness of sharing food, particularly food that you would ordinarily want all for yourself. If you give away the best bits of a steak, a special piece of chocolate or the bigger slice of an artisan cheese, that's true love in my book.

But what happens when a couple finds themselves at odds about eating? Can meat eaters and vegans co-exist happily? What about artisan bakers and folks with celiac disease? A New York Times article, "I Love You, but You Love Meat," addresses that very question.

I knew for a long time that I couldn't spend my life with someone who wasn't a foodie. Of course I write about food for a living and need a willing, open-minded eater to come along with me on assignments. But it's deeper than that. For me, the intimacy of sharing meals and a passion for cuisine are crucial. Other criteria? I need to be with someone who's willing to pony up extra bucks for organic, local, ethically raised foods. Would I have fallen for my sweetie if he was a vegetarian? Who knows.

If you have any stories about how culinary peccadillos and food ethics impacted your relationships, I'd love to hear about it!

Opinion Polls & Market Research

 

Chili-Chocolate Short Rib Recipe from Donnell Collins of Leunig's Bistro

Chili Chocolate Short Ribs with Cheddar Polenta

By Donnell Collin’s of Leunig's Bistro

Chili Rub:
2, 8-10 oz. beef or veal short ribs
2 Dried ancho chilies
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1 1/2 tablespoons cocoa powder
1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme   

Toast chilies 8-10 minutes.  Buzz in food processor until powder.  Place in bowl and add remaining ingredients and mix well. Coat the short ribs very well and let sit overnight.

Mirepoix:
1 cup Spanish onion chopped
¼ cup chopped garlic
2 ribs of celery, chopped
1 large carrot, chopped

Preheat oven to 375. Place two tablespoons of oil In an oven-proof pot.  Sear the short ribs on all sides, about 6-8 minutes.  Remove short ribs and set aside.  To the same pot, add all the above chopped vegetables [mirepoix] and sauté about 4 minutes.

2 1/2 cups red wine
2 tablespoons butter
2 cups chicken, beef, or veal stock

Add wine, butter, and stock to the pot. Bring to a simmer, scraping all the browned goodness off the bottom of the pot [deglazing].  Return the short ribs and bring to a boil.  Cover and transfer to the oven. Braise until meat is very tender and almost falling off the bone, about 1 1/2 hours.

Using a slotted spoon, transfer the ribs to a plate and cover to keep warm.  Skim the fat from the top of the braising liquid.  Simmer the liquid ‘till it thickens slightly, about 20 minutes. If needed, thicken with 1 tablespoon butter and 1 tablespoon flour, mixed in well with a whisk. Let simmer until thickened.

Cover ribs with sauce and serve with Cheddar Polenta:

Creamy Cheddar Polenta

Ingredients:
2 ½ cups chicken stock
¼ cup heavy cream
2 tablespoons butter,
¾ cup polenta
½ cup grated sharp cheddar

Bring stock, heavy cream and butter to a boil. Gradually add the polenta, whisking constantly.  Bring to a boil; then reduce heat to a simmer. Cover, but continue to stir frequently, and simmer until the polenta is tender, about 8 minutes. Remove from heat, stir in cheddar, and season with salt and pepper.

Another newspaper wants my article!

Yesterday afternoon I received an email from Gretchen Giles, editor of an Alternative Weekly called "The North Bay Bohemian" in California. The reason for the missive was that she wanted to buy one of my articles -- "Good to the Last Byte, which is about a phenomenon I call "virtual cooking" -- and reprint it in her paper!

How cool is that? It's the first time this has happened to me, so I'm pretty excited!

Food in Film: Blade Runner

Finally, after months of waiting, Netflix delivered "Blade Runner: The Final Cut" to our mailbox. The movie was so popular upon its release last December that even thought it was at the top of our queue then, it arrived on February 8th.

Normally I'd just slide a movie down on the list and wait patiently until it was easier to get, but my sweetie and I are trying to watch AFIs "100 Greatest Films" (updated) list in order from #100 to #1, and "Blade Runner" is #97. And being purists, we refused to skip it and move on to "Do The Right Thing."

Anyway...

What role does food play in "Blade Runner?" An enigmatic one. First of all, there's a lot of food-related product placement, mostly for various beer brands and Coca-Cola.  In fact, BR was one of the first films to incorporate product placement: It came out in 1982, the same year that ET made his case for Reese's Pieces. Since the film takes place in 2019 and there are no Pepsi ads to be seen, are we meant to believe that Coke ultimately won the "cola wars?" Or were they just the first soda company to jump on the bandwagon? Were these ads part of Ridley Scott's vision, or just a way to finance the film? Who knows.

When we meet our dubious "hero," Deckard, it is at a noodle bar. In BR, the population of 2019 L.A. is largely Asian. My only stab at a narrative explanation for having to watch Deckard order and slurp down noodles is to drive that fact home.

Food also makes an appearance when Deckard uses a breath/heart rate/pupil dilation response test to determine if another character, Rachel, is human or a humanoid android called a "replicant." Because animals are all but extinct -- and are idolized -- this future world, several of the questions center around eating 'em. When Rachel reacts with strong disgust to the idea of eating raw oysters, but seems less perturbed by the idea of eating boiled dog stuffed with rice, it helps Deckard conclude that she's a replicant.

Finally, there's a scene in which eggs are boiling in a tall glass beaker, and one of the replicants reaches into the beaker and pulls out an egg. This shows how invincible she is, but also, eggs themselves are symbols of birth, and birth (vs. creation) is one of the films most important themes.

And that's it.

A Tale of Molecular Gastronomy

Here's something fun...on Leite's Culinaria there's a live recording of food writer Jess Thompson describing her experience at Alinea, Chicago's temple of Molecular Gastronomy. While the delivery isn't perfect (it's live, after all), some parts are pretty darn funny. As you listen, keep in mind that Gourmet magazine named Alinea the best restaurant in the country in 2006.

After listening, I hopped over to the restaurant's website, which is as odd as one might suspect after hearing Thompson's tale. There are two menus, "Tasting" and "Tour." "Tour" has more courses. If you're the type who rebels against mega-menu descriptions which include the age and place of origin for each ingredient, you'll find the Alinea menu refreshing. Here are a couple of samples (the 0s stand in for a smoke-ring-like symbol used on the menu):

SWEETBREAD 0 cauliflower, burnt bread, toasted hay
LAMB 0 in cubism
BLACK TRUFFLE 0 explosion, romaine, parmesan
CARAMEL CORN 0 *liquified*

For a lengthy glimpse into a meal at Alinea, check out this post on the peacelovefood blog. There's a shorter one at cravings. And here's what Frank Bruni had to say after dining there.

Food Sculpture

I snapped this picture of a cheddar carving at the American Cheese Society Conference last summer.

I thought of it again this morning when I discovered a YouTube video about a Korean sculptor who makes art out of (uncooked) Ramen noodles (you can find the video at the bottom of the post).

My next thought was: "What other kinds of food sculpture can I discover?" Lots, as it turns out...

~ Jim Victor does amazing things with chocolate, cheese and butter.

~ Gorgeous, lacy eggshell carvings by Christel Assante.

~ At chocolatework.com there's a parrot made of sugar, an egret made of chocolate and  a wedding cake topped with edible snowflakes.

~ Intricate carved watermelons and fruit and squash carvings.

~ An artist who covers everyday objects with melted cheese.

There are tons more, but I'll save them for another post.

Sweeney Todd: Not as Delicious as I'd Hoped...

Every year for my birthday, my mother makes me a tourtière. Never heard of such a thing? It's a French-Canadian meat pie. I think Mom's version is made with ground pork and just a touch of tomato, and is baked in a buttery pie crust. It's savory, filling and delicious.

Perhaps it was my penchant for meat pies that made me so fascinated by the story of Sweeney Todd, which I discovered as an undergrad while working on a paper about cannibalism in film (think Ravenous, movies about Hannibal Lecter and campy offerings such as Eating Raoul, Bob Balaban's Parents, and Matt Parker and Trey Stone's weird and catchy Cannibal the Musical).

Supposedly based on a real person, although historical evidence is slim to non-existent, the version of the story that was made into a Sondheim musical recently adapted into film by Tim Burton, tells the tragic tale of a barber who is unjustly imprisoned after a powerful judge takes a liking to his wife. Upon his return to London, he finds that his wife is dead by her own hand and his daughter is the evil judge's ward. However his old landlady, Mrs. Lovett, is on Fleet Street right where he left her, churning out the city's most disgusting "meat" pies using god-knows-what as filling. Good meat was expensive and hard to come by in those days. And cats are very quick.

Todd takes up residence above Lovett's shop, and unleashes his anguish upon the unshaven men of London: Put it this way, when Todd suggests a close shave, he's not offering his clients fuzz-free cheeks. The bodies tumble down a chute into the basement, where Mrs. Lovett grinds up 'em up and pops 'em into pies, a move which seriously improves the quality of her wares.

Enough plot summary, though...While the movie gave me pleasant chills a few times, I just didn't feel any connection to the characters. Thus, any concern I had for the ongoing well-being of Sweeney or Mrs. Lovett was intellectual, not emotional. It's easy to make me cry, so if a movie doesn't, well, that's saying something. But I still found it enjoyable, just not great. My favorite parts? A couple ditties about meat pies, of course. Here are some excerpts:

Before: From "The Worst Pies in London"

...These are probably the worst pies in London.
I know why nobody cares to take them!
I should know!
I make them!
But good? No...
The worst pies in London...
Even that's polite! The worst pies in London!
If you doubt it take a bite! ...

...Is that just, disgusting?
You have to concede it!
It's nothing but crusting!
Here drink this, you'll need it.
The worst pies in London
And no wonder with the price of meat
what it is
when you get it...

After: From "God, That's Good"

...Are your nostrils aquiver and tingling as well
At that delicate, luscious ambrosial smell?
Yes they are, I can tell.
Well, ladies and gentlemen,
That aroma enriching the breeze
Is like nothing compared to its succulent source,
As the gourmets among you will tell you, of course...

... MRS. LOVETT:
What's my secret?
(To a woman)
Frankly, dear — forgive my candor —
Family secret,
All to do with herbs.
Things like being
Careful with your coriander,
That's what makes the gravy grander — !

I'd say watch it on DVD, if you're so inclined.

Strawberry + Sauerkraut = Huh?

Here's the theory: “Food combines with each other when they have major flavour components in common [sic].” Strange grammar aside -- the quotation comes from a Belgian website -- the idea is intriguing, and it's one of the key theories behind wine or beer pairing.

It is, in fact, the reason that beer lovers believe their chosen libation is actually a better match for food than vino is: The argument is that beer has caramelized, toasty, roast-y and nutty flavors that are found in many foods (bread, cheese, nuts), while wine's yeasty, acidic, tannic and fruity qualities are harder to match.

The line comes from the website called Foodpairing: A Delectable Meal for the Mind. The creators have analyzed the flavor characteristics of 250 different foods and used their analyses to create unique "maps" showing which foods have tastes in common. The closer the foods are on the map, the more similarities they have.

To the right you can see the chart they made for the humble banana. And if there's anything that strikes me about it, it's that I think bananas and yogurt are a surprisingly awesome combination. Especially when sprinkled with a little cinnamon, also on the list. Banana with mussels seems more farfetched, but I can totally imagine it on the menu at a super expensive New York City restaurant.

A few others: Chicken, which tastes good with almost anything, is matched up with standard stuff such as Parmesan, potatoes and peanuts, but apparently should be just as tasty when combined with kelp, green tea or licorice.  Asparagus has unlikely culinary comrades in vanilla, coffee and starfruit. Hmm.

The last word from the Foodpairing folks? "This is just a tool to inspire you. You still need as a chef the craftsmanship, the experience,…to translate this inspiration into a good recipe. It is not only mixing two components together. The balance between the two is important."

Free Hot Chocolate Tasting at Lake Champlain Chocolates

Recently, Good Housekeeping Magazine sampled 19 different dark chocolate hot chocolates and declared the All-Natural Old World Drinking Chocolate from Lake Champlain Chocolates in Burlington the "clear winner." Sweet!

This Saturday, they'll be hosting one of their free hot chocolate tastings from 12 - 4, and it will include the winning drink as well as their Organic and Aztec versions.

Attendees will be treated to music by the multi-talented Robert Resnick, who is also a mycologist, VPR host and writer. And he's the librarian responsible for the awesome culinary collection at Fletcher Free.

Another special feature: Chocolate-covered strawberries, which are only available around V-day.

* Photo from the Lake Champlain Chocolates website

Gael Greene's post about ME!

A few weeks ago, I blogged about the fact that former NY Magazine food critic Gael Greene and I had both created lists of funny, fake food trends for 2008. As I worked on my post, which included a link to her list, I also sent her mine.

To my surprise, she replied with a complimentary note just 15 minutes later. "Your predictions are wild and very funny," she stated, then mentioned that she would post an excerpt and a link on her website, and asked if I would do the same. Easy enough...I was already working on it!

Here's a link to her post. You'll need to scroll down to the bottom to find the bit about my article: It's underneath an entry about Ms. Greene's meal at the new Bar Boulud.

Speaking of Bar Boulud, you should check out the menu, which got me all hot and bothered when I read it. I lust after cured meats and anything made with pork or poultry livers, so a place that specializes in charcuterie is right up my alley. And my little Vermont heart beat with pride when I noticed Jasper Hill's Bayley Hazen Blue on the fromage list (one of only two blues).