Solve this mystery for me, dear readers, if you can. I have seen this model, possessor of one of the lovelier faces I've encountered lately, in only one place, a UK retail site called Pull & Bear. I have found one name associated to him, Antoine Frouin, but a Google search finds several people with that name, none of them this boy. Who is he? How old is he? Where is he from? Would he like to come live with me? These are questions that need answering. Help a sister out.
I just learned that Leonard Nimoy has died at the age of 83 and my reaction has been unexpectedly emotional. Star Trek was a big part of my childhood. I miss him already.
There are certain things that if I see on a menu, I will almost always order them, and brandade is one of those things. This amazing dish from the south of France can be made many different ways, but it’s usually some sort of combination of salt cod, potato, garlic, and olive oil.
Once made, it can be eaten as is, or turned into a beautifully browned and bubbly gratin. Actually, forget I said that, as this should always be baked and eaten piping hot, ideally with some homemade crostini.
The biggest (and only) challenge with this dish is handling the salt cod. It needs to be soaked in cold water for a day or two before you can work with it. However, depending on which salt cod you use, the time this takes can vary. If you’ve never used it before, follow the instructions herein, but maybe cut off a small piece once it’s soaked, cook it in a little bit of water, and test it for salt content. It should still be kind of salty, but not unpleasantly so.
As I mention in the video, the final product should get precariously close to being too salty, without going past that point. It's going to be similar to things like smoked salmon, prosciutto, or salami. This is why you should not do any salting, including when you boil the potatoes, until everything comes together.
This is a great recipe for entertaining, since you can make it ahead of time, and bake when you’re ready to serve. You can use one large shallow dish, or do a smaller size portion like I did here. Remember everything is cooked; so all you need to do is heat it through, brown the top, and serve. I really hope you give this a try soon. Enjoy!
Ingredients for about 24 snack-sized portions:
1 pound skinless salt cod fillet, soaked in cold water for 24-36 hours, changing water 4-5 times
2 bay leaves
6 springs thyme
1 1/2 cups whole milk
pinch cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest
8 large garlic cloves, peeled, halved
1 pound gold potatoes, cooked until tender with garlic
Blogger has made an interesting announcement. In part it reads:
Starting March 23, 2015, you won't be able to publicly share images and video that are sexually explicit or show graphic nudity on Blogger.
Note: We’ll still allow nudity if the content offers a substantial public benefit, for example in artistic, educational, documentary, or scientific contexts.
That's pretty vague, if you ask me. What this means is that a lot of blogs are going to disappear. And it also means that blogs that you probably don't think are sexually explicit or graphic may disappear without warning. I don't think that this blog has any content that could be considered adult in nature, but who knows what Blogger (or should I say Google) thinks. I've already removed Google ads because some of my content was too hot for them to handle. I was earning about $600 per year from this blog; small change to be sure, but a lot compared to the absolutely nothing I'm getting now.
I mention this for a reason. Even though I've been thinking a lot lately about letting this blog die a dignified death, I'll be damned if I would allow Google to kill it. So, dear readers, if you are a regular reader, please remember that I own the domain VerasBigGayBlog.com, and if I get nuked by Big Brother, I will surely relocate at that address. Perhaps it won't come to that.
Meanwhile, enjoy this picture of a boy with no shirt on.
Until recently, beef jerky was a late night, convenience store impulse buy, and what was in it was the least of your worries at that hour. I’ve had beef jerky where MSG was the most nutritious thing in it, but times have changed.
Thanks to a new wave of modern day cave-people, eating healthy, high-protein snacks is all the rage, and while you can find many artisan brands out there, making your own is fun, easy, and using this method, relatively quick.
You can get great flavor with as little as a 3-hour marination, but feel free to go as long as 24-hours. I did half a batch using both methods, and I actually prefer the shorter period, which seems to produce a beefier jerky. Michele on the other hand, liked the longer method, and its spicier, slightly saltier taste.
You can use any lean cut of beef you want, but I think top round is a great choice, as I explain in the video. Whatever you decide to use, please do yourself a favor, and have the butcher cut it for you. Nice thin, even slices are key, so the meat dries evenly. Just tell the butcher you are making jerky, and they’ll know what to do. I hope you give this beef jerky recipe a try soon. Enjoy!
Ingredients for about 6 (2-oz) portions Beef Jerky:
2 pounds thinly sliced beef top round
3/4 cup Worcestershire sauce
3/4 cup soy sauce
2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
1 rounded tablespoon smoked paprika
1/4 teaspoon cayenne
1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon onion powder
1 generous tablespoon honey
- Marinate for 3 hours or more.
- Bake at 175 F. for 3-4 hours or until dry and leathery
Are you a fan of beautifully pronounced collarbones? If so, you might enjoy these portraits of Lucas Santoni. If you enjoy Lucas, you may want to look at the large collection of photos I posted of him last September, here. If you enjoy Bach, here's a recording of Glenn Gould playing Bach's The Well-Tempered Clavier.
We don’t get to eat a lot of food that’s identical to what the ancient Romans would have eaten, which is one of the things that makes farro so fun.
They must have had mushrooms and fermented cream back then, so it’s easy to imagine Cleopatra and Mark Antony enjoying this before an evening of who knows what.
You can buy dry farro in whole-grain form, but I prefer the “pearled” style, where the tougher outer layer has been polished down. Mine took about 40-45 minutes to cook, but that will depend on the brand you buy, as the sizes, and amount of polishing can vary.
I think this makes the perfect winter side dish, and while you could serve it as an entrée like a risotto, for me it’s much better as a co-star. It has a very unique, firm and chewy texture that makes it a great contrast for roasted or braised meat, but all by itself, it could get tiresome. That said, I hope you give this exciting “new” grain a try soon. Enjoy!
Ingredients for 6 portions:
1/2 oz dried porcini mushrooms (a small handful), *soaked, and chopped
2 tbsp olive oil
10 brown mushrooms, cubed
1/2 onion, small dice
2 clove minced garlic
salt to taste 1 heaping cup pearled farro
3 cups chicken stock, divided
2 tbsp crème fraiche
freshly ground black pepper to taste
2 tbsp chopped Italian parsley
grated Parmigiano Reggiano
*Note: You can strain and use the soaking liquid in the dish, but after only 20 minutes it’s fairly weak, and I wanted the extra flavor of chicken broth, so I didn’t use it. If you soak them for a longer time, and/or want to stay vegetarian, then go for it.
I was reminded by the Hits of the 80s station playing over the sound system at work today how gaga I was over Adam Ant when I first saw him. Billy Idol had a similar effect. If I were 18 today, I wonder which pop stars would most stir my libido.
The problem with posting a video like this "Chicken Under a Brick," is that as soon as it goes live, I’ll start getting emails from people asking if they should do this instead of our other roast chicken videos, like salt roasted chicken, or ultimate roast chicken, or million-dollar chicken, or…well, you get the idea.
The answer is yes and no. You should definitely try this, since it really does produce a gorgeous, juicy, and flavorful bird; and yet you don’t need to, because those other recipes are totally working for you. I know, I’m not being much help.
What I find so interesting about this method is how the weight of the bricks seem to give the meat a slightly firmer, somewhat compressed texture. It’s hard to describe, and I’m not 100% sure it’s even actually happening, but I really believe there’s something unique about this technique.
You should use a big cast iron pan for this, but it will also work in a high-quality, heavy-duty stainless steel pan, or other oven-proof skillet. The key is to heat it very well before the chicken goes in. Other than that, there’s really no way to screw it up, unless you under or overcook it, which won’t happen, since you're going to check it with the thermometer.
By the way, I was kidding about using local, artisan bricks made from reclaimed clay. Since I live in San Francisco,I figured I better clarify that.I really hope you give this fun and effective chicken under brick recipe a try soon. Enjoy!
Ingredients:
1 whole, fully-dressed chicken (mine was 3 1/2 pounds)
salt and pepper to taste
dried or fresh herbs on the inside only
- Roast at 425 F. for 25 minutes, turn and continue cooking until chicken is done (165 F. internal temp in thigh). Broil on high for a few minutes to finish crisping skin.
This slim young thing is Senna van Plateringen from The Netherlands. He has the kind of angel face I cannot resist. He also has beautifully gappy teeth, which may be something only I love, but love it I do.
Since there is no National Mancake Day (yet), I decided to use today’s National Pancake Day celebration as an excuse to repost this mucho macho variation.
These bacon and cheddar corn pancakes were created as a Father’s Day brunch special, and have been very well received. I hope you give these “mancakes” a try soon, like tonight. Click here to see the original post. Enjoy!
Any time someone asks the question, “What exactly is soul food,” the answer should always be a comforting bowl of red beans and rice. Just sit them down, give them a spoon, and when they finish, ask them if they understand. They will.
Like I say in the intro, there are thousands of ways you can make this, using all sorts of smoked pig parts and sausages, but there are really only two ways you can serve it – thin and soupy, or thick and creamy.
Once you slowly simmered your beans, and they’re very, very soft and tender, and your meats are falling apart, you’re ready to serve. If you ladle it up as is, you’ll have something that’s fairly loose, with most of the beans still whole. It’s great like this, and based on my travels to New Orleans, the more common style.
However, another popular technique is to smash and stir some of the cooked beans into the mixture as you continue cooking. This creates a much thicker, and creamier consistency, which I really enjoy when I want something a bit more substantial. It’s closer to a chili texture, and I love how the rice sticks to it.
This is totally up to personal taste, so if you’ve never made it before, try some on rice as soon as the beans are tender, and it’s still pretty juicy. Check it out, and then, if you want, you can continue cooking/smashing/stirring to end up closer to where I did.
Regardless of how thick you make yours, you’ll want to soak your beans overnight in cold water before starting the recipe. If you forget, which you will, you can always use the quick method. Bring the beans to a boil in large pot of water, turn off the heat, and let it sit there for an hour or so to soften up, and become easier to digest.
If you put enough meat in it, this is more than a meal, but it also makes a great side dish for barbeque, or pretty much anything. Throw in some collard greens, and maybe some cornbread, and let the good times roll. I hope you give this easy, red beans and recipe a try soon. Enjoy!
Ingredients for 8 portions:
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
12 ounces Andouille sausage, sliced or cubed
1 cup finely diced onion
3/4 cup finely diced celery
3/4 cup finely diced green peppers
4 cloves minced garlic
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 smoked ham hock
2 bay leaves
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper, or to taste
2 quarts chicken broth or water, plus more as needed to adjust consistency
1 pound red kidney beans, soaked overnight
about 2 teaspoons kosher salt, or to taste hot sauce to taste
My friends at Allrecipes.com have been working on some online food-related quizzes, and wanted me to check one out to see what I thought. I was hesitant at first, since I was obviously going to get all the questions right, and have to tell them their test was way too easy, thereby possibly hurting someone’s feelings.
However, much to my chagrin, I only scored a 15.Apparently, the quiz is not too easy.Do you think you could beat Chef John’s score? Find out here!
I know I'm repeating myself, but I just love this little videos that Jordan Ver Hoeve puts up on YouTube to help and motivate people in their fitness goals. Not only is he gorgeous, but he seems like the nicest boy imaginable. Here's his latest:
I’ve always wanted to do a Baked Alaska, and with Valentine’s Day coming up, I thought it would be the perfect time to demonstrate this show-stopping dessert. I just didn’t anticipate coming up with possibly the greatest browning meringue hack in history.
As you’ll see in the video, I made two of these, so I could show you a couple different ways to decorate. After browning the first one with a blowtorch, my preferred method, I started on the second, and for whatever reason the torch stopped working.
I was just about to turn on the oven, where you can finish these at 500°F until browned, when I had an idea. I’d just bought a windproof lighter to use when grilling in the backyard, and wondered if the tiny jet flame that shoots out from the tip would be hot enough to do the job. It was, and it did.
As far as the actual recipe itself, there’s really not a lot that can go wrong. As long as you freeze your ice cream cake thoroughly before browning the meringue, and cook your sugar syrup to 240°F, yours will look just like mine, or better.
There are obviously unlimited combinations of cake and ice cream flavors you can use for this, so I suggest consulting with your Valentine, and giving this easy Baked Alaska technique a try very soon. Enjoy!
For 2 Baked Alaska:
Note: You can make these ahead, including the piping, freeze, and then brown the meringue before serving.
1 1/2 cups raspberry ice cream
1/2 cup vanilla ice cream
2 round thick slices chocolate cake
For the Italian meringue:
2 large egg whites
1 tsp lemon juice
- beat to soft peak, and slowly add 240 F. sugar syrup (see below)
- continue beating until you have stiff peaks that will hold a sharp line
For the sugar syrup:
1/2 cup white sugar
1/4 cup water
FLAMBE NOTE: First of all, be careful. Pour an ounce or so of any liqueur (I used brandy but cherry liqueur or Framboise would be even better) into a pan and place on low heat. When it’s warm enough you can it ignite with a lighter, and spoon the flaming liquid over your baked Alaska. Just be sure to turn down the lights!
