Wednesday, August 17, 2011
Little Rock Arkansas...a long way from home!
Whew! Finally! I am posting the details of this trip I had back in February 2011. Although I was only there for one week, I had a couple memorable experiences that makes certain my revisit some time in the future.
Monday, August 15, 2011
Wednesday, August 10, 2011
Guess Who Came to Dinner?
Last weekend I returned from another short trip to Miami and unlike previous visits, I didn't capture any pictures of the meals. Some were just god awful and others were redeeming.
Anyway last weekend I was at home getting the trees and hedges in order when we had a visitor who arrived with a couple in laws. Apparently the entire entourage came to our home expecting to enjoy our Sunday Lunch. As fate would have it, I didn't cook the entire weekend. So (and this is where fate beckons) while in the garden my wife asked if there was anything that I could prepare as our special guest had not had a good meal since arriving in the country.
With the understanding that it is these impromptu experiences that tests one's resolve and provides an opportunity to showcase one's creativity, I accepted the challenge to a Dinner Impossible.
Our guest was treated to a 30 minutes Chilli with Garlic Buttered Spaghetti, Roasted Toamato Crostini and a Panzanella.
My honoured guest expressed repeated thanks for the meal and said he was embarrassed for 'cleaning the plates'. To show his gratitude our guest asked if we would allow him to shoot a couple family photos to which we agreed.
So on Tuesday August 9th our guest visited once more with all his paraphanilia and snapped our pictures, professionally and beautifully. Digital copies were provided and it is only at that time I noticed his name. After a couple internet searches I disocovered that we were photographed by the famous Bill Mortley.
OMG!!
I am humbled and forever grateful to have been of service to Mr. Mortley and I extended an open invitation to dinner at our home whenever he visits Trinidad.
Sunday, July 17, 2011
Mustard BBQ Sauce....It's a Must!
A couple weeks ago I was browsing recipes and came across an interesting one for a mustard based barbeque sauce. I know using mustard and vinegar as a base are a signature Southern style but I never expected the taste to be this interesting.The blogger suggested pairing the sauce with pork and they were right in point.
As the Pseudo does, I made some alterations to the original recipe by adding honey which to me gives any BBQ sauce a depth that sugar alone cannot produce.
The rest is history.... I present my Mustard BBQ Baby Back Ribs served with Saffron rice, grilled yellow Zucchini and buttered Shrimp/Vegetables.
Note the generous serving of additional dipping sauce.
Coming Soon: Little Rock 2011
In late February of this year I was in Arkansas. In the next few days I will post the pics of the food experiences I had while there.
Monday, June 6, 2011
T-BONE STEAKS..The best of both worlds!
I love Beef and that passion went to another level with the Filet Mignon I had at the Miami Marquis.At local restaurants, steaks are WAY overpriced as in a couple hundred dollars for one serving. To indulge I have to purchase and prepare the steaks myself.
Fortunately a colleague's father is a butcher and so I get okay prices. The meat is a little tough and so requires some skill to get it to the tender fall off the bone state. I achive that by first marinating the steaks for 30 minutes then slow cooking them for 2-3 hours. At the end of that tenderising process its off to the cast iron skillet to produce the grill marks and the rich color and flavor that makes a steak a STEAK.
Things are about to get way better as a Chef friend of mine introduced me to an associate of his that supplies local restaurants with A1 USDA steaks! I cant wait to work with animals that were reared specifically for producing the finest cuts as opposed to what I have been using.
Better Steak days are coming soon!
Saturday, May 14, 2011
LOW, SLOW & SMOKING PERMITTED..BBQ 101
Saturdays should be declared as the official BBQ day of the week! It the end of the stressful week and the only day that is really yours to kick back and do just what you want to do.I wanted today to be a special bbq day since I ve been craving this all week. Furthermore this is the place that my passion for cooking started so from time to time I need to take the pilgrimage back to the place of divine intervention!
There it is ...... marinated for a couple hours in cider vinegar and other dried seasonings. Since I was using my kettle grill today and not any of the smokers I decided to get these partially cooked in the oven at 140C for 1 hour then it was off to the grill to get the charred look which took about 45 mins. I then reduced the flame and allowed these to slow cook while basting them in a marinade of seasoned pan drippings from the pre cooking process another 40 mins or so.
Once cooked through as indicated by the meat pulling away from the bones I started the glazing with the BBQ sauce and then left them a further 40 mins to be smoked with a wood chip blend.
You need some of this!
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