Saturday, June 30, 2012
Well, July is 'round the corner and what does that mean ? Fireworks and Giant Strawberry Short Cake !!!!! So ask Lisa Bonarrigo what she thinks about the "Thunder Boomers ?!?!?!"
Says Lisa, " I love Pizza, ............... and fireworks !!!!! And infused water !!!!! So stop by the cafe and meet our Chef Paul Jerabek, order a sandwich, have a glass of free infused water. Yum !!!!!
Says Lisa, " I love Pizza, ............... and fireworks !!!!! And infused water !!!!! So stop by the cafe and meet our Chef Paul Jerabek, order a sandwich, have a glass of free infused water. Yum !!!!!
Monday, June 18, 2012
Thursday, June 7, 2012
A Recomendation ..... For You !
Kim Horton's Specialty Foods
So, ........ have you been to the "Public House Market Place" in Portland Maine's Monument Square. If you have not then you are missing a few hidden gems that quietly house themselves inside the Market Places' hallowed halls. One of them is Kim Horton's.
At the other end of Congress Street you have Longfellow Square named for the statue of HW Longfellow that rests there, which is odd because the "Longfellow House" is across the street from MONUMENT SQUARE !" ...... whatever. Get off your high horse and take a stroll into the Public House Market Place where you will find Kim Horton, aka K Horton Specialty Foods. And, special are Kim and friends.
Firstly, KIM GIVES SAMPLES !!!!! Now I get paid for some reviews, do some for my blog and do others because I feel that they should be done just to be another who sings the praises of a great food place. Kim Horton's place is just that. They do not give samples, off the cuff, of any cheese that they feel should be used before the "sale date" is up as everyone in the food business knows that CHEESE LASTS FOREVER. They give samples of the beautiful items that Kim and her staff create in their tiny kitchen. And, YUM is the word. If you get a sample from Kim, be rude and take MANY !!!!!
Kim is smart. She makes most of what they sell and buys what she does not want to make, no matter. If you buy a product to sell in your shop, like cheese, you only buy the best, as Kim does. Her mousses and Pates melt in your mouth, her cheeses make you weep and her chicken salad ALMOST made me cry. You have to realize that I think that I am the only person who makes a good chicken salad. If you do not like chicken salad try her " Herbed Tuna " or just be happy with any wrap that her staff has put together. I am usually not a fan of wraps, like my sandwiches on bread, but K Hortons nearly converted me on several occasions when wraps were all that were available in my price range.
Yes, I get odd looks when I over sample, I have stopped that now, I swear ! But here is my secret for decadence in over-abundance........
Buy a 1/4 inch thick slice of her decadent Pate de Campagne. Cover it with a free paper napkin. Tip Toe across to the bread bakery across the way. Ask for a sample of their delicious, homemade bread to be reviewed later, if I am not shot that is ......
Use your sampled, buttered bread, add your decadent Pate, fold in half, sneak outside, hide your face, especially from your heart doctor, and ENJOY. Total decadence, Buttered bread, Pate, YUM. I can still feel my arteries hardening !!!!!
So, if you have to go bad and tick off your doctor go to the Portland Public Market House for a delicious meal from Kim Horton. If not a meal, at least pick up some cheese and crackers, you will never be able to make up your mind of which type of cheese, so here is a suggestion:
Brie, easy and ready to go, add a drop of lime marmalade, then some orange jam, grab some crackers or toasts and enjoy ! And, if cheese is not what you want ....you have a huge vegetable bin to pick from, etc..... Hey, buy any type of cheese that you like, add a Roma tomato, some fresh herbs and an assortment of fresh veggies that Horton's offers and, well you are golden !
I recently bought some Vermont cheddar that was tasty, also a Camembert wedge that had a lemon infusion which made me weep. Strawberry gormandise, etc.... I could go on and on....... I tried the goat meat, great, ... I have to stop now, I am getting hungry again !
Go to K Horton's, you will not be disappointed.
A Recipe ..... For You !
You have to make this 5 days in advance of serving but it is worth planning ahead. This recipe is a truffle-like concoction that will make-em weep ! Yummy in every way !
Chocolate Ice Cream
7 oz dark chocolate, finely chopped
2 cup plus 2 Tbl whole milk
1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
6 Lg egg yolks
13 Tbl sugar, divided
¼ cup heavy whipping cream
Whisk milk and cocoa powder in a medium heavy saucepan
over medium heat until mixture begins to boil; set aside.
Using an electric mixer, beat egg yolks and 7 tablespoons
sugar in another medium bowl until very thick ribbons form, about 2 minutes.
Whisking constantly, gradually add hot milk mixture to egg yolk mixture. Return
mixture to saucepan. Add melted chocolate and whisk to blend. Stir over low
heat until slightly thickened and an instant-read thermometer registers 175°,
about 5 minutes. Transfer chocolate custard to a large bowl and place over
another large bowl of ice water. Stir until chocolate custard is cool.
Bring remaining 6 tablespoons sugar and 2 tablespoons
water to a boil in a small heavy, deep saucepan over medium-high heat, stirring
until sugar dissolves. Boil, occasionally swirling pan and brushing down sides
with a wet pastry brush (do not stir), until a dark amber color forms, about 5
minutes. Gradually whisk in cream (mixture will bubble vigorously). Whisk
caramel into chocolate custard. Strain into a large container; cover and chill
for 2 days.
Process custard in an ice cream machine according to
manufacturer's instructions. Transfer to another container; freeze for 3 days
before eating. YUM !!!
Monday, June 4, 2012
Saturday, June 2, 2012
Saturday, May 26, 2012
A Recipe ..... For You !
Perfect Roasted Chicken
With all of the food blogs, food shows and the likes, by now most folks have heard about some sort of Mirapoix. If not, generally a Mirapoix is a combination of vegetables that add a boost of flavor to what could be a more bland meat. It also adds flavor to the drippipngs. The tradidional French version is carrot, celery and onion. The Cajuns add Bell Pepper, I leave out the pepper but add mushrooms as I love 'shrooms. Smaller cooking times require the veggies to be cut into smaller pieces however when you are using the Mirapoix as a "roasting Rack' any size will do. I usually do 3 inch long sticks so I can have some left for veggies and dip !!!!! Place the Mirapoix in your roaster, then add a splash of water, or white wine, pop the bird on top, to save on calories sprinkle the bird first with Salt and Pepper, then spritz with canned spray ( Pam works fine ), then a layer a dried herbs de provence mixture, spritx, herbs, spritz, herbs ..... this gives you an herb crust as the spritz acts as the glue. Put a lemon or two inside the bird, drop a wedge into the pas, a few garlic gloves inside and roast away.
HINT: The bird is done when the skin browns, no secret there. Test the chicken at a joint for clear juices but please do not over cook. Allow her to rest under foil while you defat the sauce, thicken with corn starch, carve your bird however you want and wait to hear rounds of applause !!!!
EASY AS THAT !!!!!!!!!!
I just don't know where the world got the idea that roasting a chicken is a hard thing to do !!!!
NOTE: Save the carcass in your freezer for homemade stock. Another hint: save unused pieces of the afore-mentioned veggies in your freezer too, then you have stock makers at the ready. You can even save the bones from your Kentuckey Colornal !!!!!!!!
And please make homemade stock, gives you something to do on a rainy day, makes your house smell great and saved you money !!!!!! You can freeze stock in ice cube trays, zipper type bags,.....
A Recomendation ..... For You !
If you like popped corn go to Little Lad's on Congress Street in Portland, Maine and grab a bag of their herbed Popped Corn ! Yum !!!!!
Friday, May 25, 2012
Sunday, May 20, 2012
Sunday, May 13, 2012
Friday, May 4, 2012
Wednesday, April 11, 2012
A Recomendation ..... For You !
Well, the Taco Snob is back ! A friend called me and said I needed to try a great taco joint called Tic Taco. So of course I went over with no money on me and a dead credit card ! That is Okay though as, to start the service was exceptional ! How embarrassing is it the be a food Blogger, have no money on you ? Pretty Sad !!!!! However the crisp taco that I had was anything but sad ............ As my English friend over, well in England says ..... Darling it is delicious, and it was. Now everyone who knows this taco snob knows how harsh of a judge I am. After 24 years in the Deep South I certainly have become one ! Firstly it was a bit hard to find but well worth the search and embarrassment. When you end up with egg on your face ( or should I say taco ? ) well, I left an IOU and savored every bite. The beef was perfectly cooked and what I liked the most, besides the nice people behind the counter was the fact that the smart workers left the onions off. I love onions on my chili but not on my Tacos. I am a beef, lettuce, tomatoes and cheese taco snob. And, when the tomatoes are fresh from the garden and the proper taco lettuce, iceberg are as crisp and fresh as the trappings onn my delicious fare there was nothing more to say !!!!! And, I am not one to give a good review just because I was embarrassed. I would just not write it as, after all every food writer has their own opinion as the one in Dallas who wrote me a review about me saying that my Chicken Soup tasted like " Car Wash Drippings! " Whatever. Take my word for it and head over to One City Center and enjoy a taco. And you will !!!!!! And please do not tell my doctor about all that guacamole .............
Saturday, March 24, 2012
Best Wishes ...... and A Recipe ..... For You !
Happy Birthday Harry Houdini !!!!!
Wait, wasn't he just here ?
BREAD-AND-BUTTER CUSTARD
Three large pieces white bread — buttered. Cut in quarters, and line an enamel pie dish with same. Prepare custard of two eggs, one cup granulated sugar, one quart of milk.
Pour custard over bread and butter, and bake it in moderate oven forty-five minutes.
“I happen to have a weakness for sweets, and this one you will not find in any other cook book.”
– Sincerely yours,
Harry Houdini
Thursday, March 22, 2012
A Recipe ..... For You !
Bavarian Crepes
2 eggs
1 cup buttermilk
3/4 cup flour
2 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
2 tablespoons butter, melted
Cherry Filling (see below)
1 cup sour cream 1 oz. semi-sweet chocolate, grated
Cherry Filling: 2 cans sweet dark pitted cherries (16 oz. ea.)
1 cup powdered sugar
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1/2 cup almond flavored liqueur
1 cup sour cream
1 oz. semisweet chocolate, grated
2 eggs
1 cup buttermilk
3/4 cup flour
2 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
2 tablespoons butter, melted
Cherry Filling (see below)
1 cup sour cream 1 oz. semi-sweet chocolate, grated
Cherry Filling: 2 cans sweet dark pitted cherries (16 oz. ea.)
1 cup powdered sugar
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1/2 cup almond flavored liqueur
1 cup sour cream
1 oz. semisweet chocolate, grated
In a medium bowl, beat eggs slightly. Add buttermilk. Beat with a whisk or with electric mixer on low speed until just blended. Add flour, sugar and cocoa, beating with whisk or with electric mixer on medium speed until smooth. Beat in melted butter. Let batter stand about 1/2 hour at room temperature. If kept longer before cooking, refrigerate. Stir batter with a spoon. Cook crepes on upside down crepe griddle or in traditional crepe or omelet pan. As each crepe is cooked, stack in a covered dish or pan to keep warm and moist. Prepare Cherry Filling. Spoon onto warm cooked crepes. Fold sides over filling, envelope style. Spoon sour cream on top. Sprinkle with grated chocolate. Serve at once. Makes 14-16 servings.
Cherry Filling: Drain cherries, reserving 1/3 cup juice. In a medium pan, combine powdered sugar and cornstarch. Stir in liqueur and reserved cherry juice. Add drained cherries. Stir constantly over moderate heat until slightly thickened. You can also top woth Neutells or Chocolate Sauce !
Yum !!!!!
Tuesday, March 20, 2012
A Recomendation ..... For You !
I met a great guy today who does personal Chef Catering and is a sweetheart of a guy who has a great website. He is Jim Keithley of our local Cannel 8 News. If you are in Portland and need a caterer call him ! Keithleyinthekitchen.com.
Enjoy !
Enjoy !
Saturday, March 17, 2012
A Recomendation ..... For You!
Everyone who knows me, well knows what a taco snob I am. Happiness abounds when you walk into a beautiful dining spot called TACO ESCOBARR ! There is nothing more I can say but I have found Heaven in Portland Maine. Today I had the Carne Assada in a puffed shell and let me just say, as my mentor Julia Child once said, "Diet Food is only edible while you are waiting for your steak to cook !" The Carne Assada here at Taco Escobarr is worth breaking your diet. And, I am not saying that they are fattening, they are just so good you'll want to eat them until you die. All I can say is Que Bueno ! Now I am a taco snob and that doesn't compute to some folks who will see me sneaking a taco from Taco Belle, ( Secretly yummy ! ) however when my snobiness comes out the only place to go is Taco Escobarr !!!
Deluxe !
Thursday, March 15, 2012
Good News !
The Taste of Maine Restaurant opened today ! Good news for all! And, if you want a "Taste of Maine" you gotta go there ! There are as many people who have opinions on whose Lobster Roll is the best as there are lobsters in the sea. There's is great. And, the rest of their fare is deluxe too. Their Lobster roll is made correctly. Cold Lobster meat ( sorry to that place in the Cape that servres the lobster meat hot, a no no ! ), a properly toasted Nissen Hot Dog Bun, cold mayo and a spot of lettuce if you must. No bacon, though I LOVE bacon, no blue cheese or any cheese, just pure heaven, LOBSTER AND MAYO. A traditional lobster roll has nothing else. And, it has to be a Nissen bun, a top loader. You can't grill a side loader. You can cut them in half to make minis for cocktail ( A lot easier than making homemade, TRUST ME !) but if you can't grill it it aint a Maine Lobster roll. So, go to The Taste of Maine, enjoy the view and their Maine Shrimps, or even better, a lobster roll. Yum !!!!!
Wednesday, March 14, 2012
Monday, February 13, 2012
Thursday, February 9, 2012
Monday, February 6, 2012
Saturday, February 4, 2012
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