The Road to Culinary Heaven is Paved with Good Intentions…

When I set out to write a food blog, my intention was to blog about once a week, give or take.  Since I began this little venture as a food blogger several things have happened.  For example, I am amazed at how many people have mentioned that they saw my blog.  Clients have mentioned it, and I have been called by the manager of Twig’s thanking me for my nice comments, and others.  Jacque has also become accustomed to not eating or drinking anything prior to seeing if I want to take a picture for later use in FoodByDoug.

This will be the first of what will probably become a Heinz 57 blog post.  Just a catch-up of several photos and comments from the past month or so.

Pan Seared Duck Breast

Pan seared duck breast.  We had this with some port reduction sauce leftover from the Rotary Wine and Cheese a few weeks ago.  My friend Chuck Ladoceur made the sauce, and I hope to share his recipe in a future post. Three points when searing duck breast:

·      Always cut slashes into the skin and fat.

·      Drain the duck grease out of the pan as you are cooking it. 

·      Place duck breast fat side down in a cold pan and bring up to heat while searing for a tenderer outcome.

San Francisco Trip

November 20^th I had to teach a class in San Francisco. With Jacque’s birthday being the next day, she accompanied me on my trip and we spent the night celebrating her 52^nd birthday.  The following pictures are from our trip.

 

Jacque enjoyed a Raspberry martini at the Top of the Mark before we headed to dinner.  When in San Francisco, if you want a great view of the city in a classic bar you have to go to the Top of the Mark. (http://www.intercontinentalmarkhopkins.com/top-of-the-mark.aspx).

 

Olive and Lamb Kabob appetizers we enjoyed at Top of the Mark before going to dinner. 

  

Due to a mess up in reservations, we ended up at what is probably the best fish restaurant in all of San Francisco – Scomas (http://www.scomas.com).  Next time in San Francisco we are not going to be here because somebody inadvertently messed up alternate reservations; instead, this is going to be our deliberate, pre-planned destination!  Jacque had Oysters Rockefeller as her appetizer followed by steamed Dungeness crab.  I had the fresh caught swordfish in a caper cream sauce – it was awesome!  Try as hard as you can to resist the fresh San Francisco sourdough bread they bring out.  The aroma is enticing, you feel the warmth coming from the basket, just go ahead…resist, if you can!

 

(My after dinner drink - waiting for Jacque to finish her crab)

After dinner we returned to the Fairmont Hotel where we were staying and had another couple of drinks in the bar and, of course, Crème Brule.  As mentioned in previous blogs, Crème Brule is Jacque’s favorite.

 (http://www.fairmont.com/san-francisco/?cmpid=google_saf_search-brand-us_brand-e-suppl&s_kwcid=TC%7C1029183%7Cthe%20fairmont%20san%20francisco%7C%7CS%7Ce%7C51533534729&gclid=CKTSsI2ts8ICFVJcfgodxH0AqA)

The Fairmont gets an ‘A’ for originality in Crème Brule presentation, including the placing of it on a piece of short bread.  They may want to reconsider the engineering of the presentation, however, because when you put your spoon into the actual Brule, the Crème squishes out from underneath.  Don’t be deterred, though; the squishiness did not detract from the taste.

Family Dinner with the Boys

On Saturday night before Thanksgiving, we had a family dinner with both boys home from college, and Jean my Mother-in-law.  We started off with Hungarian partridge from the Flying B Ranch wrapped in bacon, with just a little bit of honey drizzled over the partridge before baking.

Dinner then consisted of a Prime Rib with Dave’s special seasoning from Gene’s market in Omak.  It is really nice to have a friend who is responsible for the meat market at your local grocery store.  Dave Womack takes real pride in the meat he sells.  When you get a prime rib from him, have him cut it away from the bone, season it, then tie it back to the bone for cooking.  I have enjoyed several of Dave’s prime ribs, and have never once been disappointed. 

What I enjoy most about having a well-stocked wine cellar is picking out a wine to enjoy for a special meal for just Jacque and myself, or to share with friends or family.  Tonight was such a case.  After checking Cellar Tracker (a program I use to maintain my collection -- www.cellartracker.com) I opted for a bottle of Gorman Wineries’ (http://www.gormanwinery.com) the Evil Twin.

I opted to decant it for about an hour before we enjoyed it.  This allowed it to get to room temperature and to breathe after being locked up in the bottle for several years.  Letting a wine breathe is like releasing a Genie from the bottle.  The surprise of having a genie appear can be overwhelming and shocking.  Drinking a really good wine allows you to contemplate the wishes the genie may grant for you.

Iceberg lettuce wedge with tomatoes and onions in blue cheese with bacon bits crumbled over the top.    It was pointed out by everyone that they missed the actual crumbled blue cheese on top – who needs a food critic living in their home!

 (Prime Rib, Yorkshire Pudding, and Cauliflower)

Thanksgiving This and That

To brine or not to brine?  I prefer brining my turkey for at least 18 hours before roasting.  This year I tried something a little different – I actually boiled water, added salt, two cut up oranges, a Walla Walla onion, and mulled wine mix.

The boys have outgrown helping me.  No, take that back: Greg helped with the turkey legs on the Treager this Thanksgiving, and did the Brussel sprouts, but all in all, Jacque has taken over being my sous chef.  It is actually pretty fun cooking together.

Regarding Treager smoked turkey legs: These have become a year-round favorite in our house.  They are great for the holidays, as well as summer bbq’s around the pool. We - meaning Greg and me, because he is always part of the turkey legs - use a sweet rub, nothing special ever, but then I turn Greg loose on coming up with a combination of maple syrup, brown sugar, butter, and Kentucky bourbon.  No, let me correct that: Greg uses Kentucky bourbon and adds modest amounts of the above.  This year we (he) took the basting one step further and used the meat injector and injected the legs twice in the last hour and half of cooking. (The final time being only about ten minutes before pulling them off.)

Sautéing celery, onions, and mushrooms for the stuffing and dressing

I am not sure how long it took me to realize the importance of putting the herbs and seasonings under the skin then on the skin.  I place dome on the skin for aesthetics, but for taste, rub the herbs into the meat under the skin right onto the meat.  I also rub olive oil under the skin and on the skin itself.

(Before)

 (After)

Remember to poke and repoke your turkey several times in several different places to make certain it is at 165 degrees.  Let it rest a good 20 minutes before carving, especially if you brined it before cooking.

Thanksgiving Dinner Buffet:  My hint here is to use the aluminum casserole dishes you get from the grocery store.  It makes clean up easier.  We use the casserole dishes as “to go” containers for guests.  That way Jacque does not have all those extra dishes to wash. 

(Sorry about the delay, please let me know what you think.  Feel free to add your tips or suggestions in the comments section.)

Doug's Rosemary Balsamic Chicken and Rice

At some point just about every day, I call Jacque and ask her if she has any thoughts about what she might want for dinner.  Today was no exception. Being in the midst of the holiday season, and Jacque having spent the first of what will be about five days of transforming our home into a Christmas wonderland, she wanted something simple.  I had her take a few boneless and skinless chicken breasts from the freezer.  I buy these by the bag from the grocery store or Costco and keep them on hand for a protein option when cooking. 

Not knowing what I was actually going to do with the chicken when I got home, I scavenged our refrigerator and found a large beet that needed to be used up.  Off to the IPad and a Google search of chicken and beets and presto! I found several options.  The second one on the page (http://www.primalpalate.com/paleo-blog/rosemary-balsamic-chicken-and-roasted-beets/) called for chicken with rosemary, garlic, and balsamic. A quick check of the pantry, and yes I had all of the ingredients (the actual recipe called for fresh rosemary; I used dried…but heck this was just the inspiration). 

·      2 – 3 chicken breasts

·      ¼ cup olive oil

·      2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar

·      ½ tablespoon dried rosemary

·      Lots of garlic – can you have enough?

·      One very large beet

·      Olive oil

·      Salt and pepper

·      ¾ cup sliced mushrooms

·      ¼ cup diced onion

·      ¾ cups wild rice

·      1 ½ cups water with chicken bullion added to it

(I don't bother taking the skin off of my root vegetables when cooking them...just was them well)

I started off cutting the chicken breasts into a few smaller pieces.  This was primarily so I could return them to the cold water and quickly accelerate their thawing.  While I was letting the chicken continue to thaw, I cut the beets into chunks and tossed in olive oil and seasoned with Himalayan salt and black pepper.  I spread them over half of a rimmed cookie sheet and returned to the chicken that was now thawed.

I poured about a ¼ of a cup of olive oil, and a couple of tablespoons of balsamic vinegar.  Next, I added in half a tablespoon of dried rosemary, and a lot of crushed garlic.  (I put six cloves through my garlic press.)  I hand mixed/massaged it all together and placed it on the same cookie sheet as the beets, then placed the sheet in a preheated oven on convection roast at 400 degrees for about thirty minutes.

 (sautéing the mushroom and onions)

(a pantry staple)

For our side dish I cut up four mushrooms and about a ¼ cup of Walla Walla onions and placed them in a saucepan with olive oil. I cooked them on medium until tender and then added chicken based bullion and brought it to a boil.  Upon boiling I added organic wild rice and reduced to low for about thirty minutes. 

My timing was off a little tonight, so my chicken and beets were done prior to my rice.  I simply turned off the oven and let it rest in there rather than letting it cool, or moving to the warming drawer. 

Our wine tonight followed suit with the rest of the night, and I found a bottle of Robin Ridge Flamingo 2011.  We drank it by default because it was already upstairs and did not require a trip to our wine cellar.   It is a Rose’ that has more of an orange than a rose tint to it.  While the label itself suggests pairing it with a warm evening (current whether outside is 10 degrees), I found it very enjoyable on this cold night.  Jacque and I are both at a loss as to where or when we acquired this wine, nor can we remember ever visiting Robin Ridge winery. Nonetheless, it was very refreshing, and I’m glad we had it on hand! (http://www.robinridgewinery.com)

The moral of the story: Keep a well-stocked freezer and pantry, and make it work.

Famous "St. Elmo's" Lacking the "Fire"

(Stephen and Greg Sklar at St. Elmo's)

What’s in a name? We’ve all heard of Maxim’s or Tavern on the Green, and while many have never eaten there, I think many people just assume that these restaurants didn’t become famous for no reason at all. They must have the fire of great culinary artistry to have earned their reputations, right? Well, not necessarily so…

Indianapolis boasts its own famous steak house known as St. Elmo’s, and my son, Stephen, has tried repeatedly in the past to get us reservations there.  On this last trip to see our boys at Wabash College over Halloween weekend, he finally succeeded. Stephen secured us a coveted table at this legendary steak house for 8:30 pm on a Saturday night.  After prior failed attempts to get in, we were all eager to see if St. Elmo’s was as “hot” a venue as it reputation would indicate.

Prior to dinner Jacque and I headed down to the wine bar at the Conrad where we were all staying for the night.  The wine bar at the Conrad has several stations with a dozen or so bottles of wine connected to a machine allowing you to insert a card and receive a two-ounce pour.  You load your card with money, and each wine has a brief description, its retail bottle price, and its two-ounce pour price.  The machine automatically deducts the price of the pour from your balance.  Brilliantly convenient!

The first wine I tried was a Silver Oaks 2009 Cabernet Sauv – it was one of the priciest tastings available, but I took advantage of the venue to try a wine I had heard a lot about.  It didn’t disappoint, but that doesn’t change the fact that there are many comparably fine wines at a fraction of the price. I was impressed overall with the wide and varied selection, which even included one of our favorite wines NXNW / North by Northwest.  Stephen joined us for a tasting before the four of us headed for a brisk walk from our hotel to St. Elmo’s. 

With a line of people outside, and the bar full of patrons waiting for a seat, we were shown to our table immediately.  Lorenzo our waiter introduced himself and offered me the wine list (http://www.stelmos.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/01/StElmo-WineList.pdf) I have attached a pdf link, just for your perusing fun.  I admit to being a wine snob, and Jacque and I have a pretty nice collection of wines in our cellar, but I had to look long and hard for a wine that would meet both my budget requirements and pallet.  

Finally, I ordered a bottle of Frog’s Leap 2009 Cabernet from Napa.  I was disappointed when Lorenzo offered me the customary taste and I noticed a chill to the wine.  Red wine, particularly a cabernet and your heavier reds, should be served somewhere between 60 on the low end and 68 on the high end.  For the price of wines on their list, and to truly enjoy a fine wine as part of an overall dining experience, I think it would have been totally acceptable to have opened the wine at the table and then allowed it to breath, or decanted it while suggesting that it needs a little time to come up to temperature.  I recognize, nevertheless, that with a wine inventory as extensive as the one at St. Elmo’s, not all wines will be at the perfect serving temperature. And, of course, you are better off storing wine cooler than warmer.   While the chill was a tad disappointing, once our wine came up to temperature, it opened nicely and had beautiful full tannins that lingered in the mouth but did not settle and stay.  It was a great wine to be enjoyed with a nice big steak.

(Yes, that is all horseradish)

The night before our visit to St. Elmo’s we were told by several of Stephen and Greg’s frat bothers at the Sigma Chi house that we were to try the world famous Shrimp Cocktail.  We were warned that it was extra hot made with lots of fresh horseradish, but absolutely awesome.  We were also told that one was probably enough to share between a few people if we were planning on indulging in steaks as our main course.  Lorenzo brought us a shrimp cocktail for Stephen, Gregory and Jacque to share – I don’t eat shellfish.  The reports from all three, evidenced by the beads of sweat and nostrils clearing, were that it was most definitely hot.  Still, while hot, none of them found it overpowering. The five shrimps covered a house cocktail sauce that was more fresh minced horseradish than sauce. The shrimp were a nice size and quite fresh.  Even if you are not going to have dinner at St. Elmo’s, I suggest a drink in the bar and a shrimp cocktail as an appetizer.  An online review revealed that you can purchase their sauce to take home (http://www.stelmos.com/cocktail-sauce/st-elmo-steak-house-bottle-cocktail-sauce/)

(For my appetizer, I had a simple glass of tomato juice.  This too is a St Elmo's tradition)

For our soup and salads, Jacque had their traditional navy bean soup, Stephen and Greg had Caesar Salads, and I had to try the tomatoes, onions, and blue cheese in vinaigrette.  My salad was great!  I love this traditional steak house salad.  In St. Elmo’s case they served it using nice ripe but firm tomatoes, with onions which were not over powering and which were cut nice and thin but not paper-thin.  Plenty of blue cheese crumbled over the top.  The vinergarette dressing – awesome and lots of it.

Stephen talked me into swapping salads half way through and his Caesar was also really good.  No anchovies, but plenty of anchovy paste in the dressing.  I love Caesar salads too; I have given several speeches around the making of a Caesar dressing emphasizing that the individual ingredients as stand alone foods are pretty un-appetizing to most folks (raw egg yolks, Dijon mustard, olive oil, garlic, lemon juice, anchovies and or anchovy paste, salt and pepper), but when you put them all together you get a salad that you pay a premium for in most restaurants and it does not even have tomatoes and cucumbers on it. 

(the sautéed mushrooms were great!!!)

Regarding the main dish, remember this: the main thing has to be the main thing.  I have heard several speakers say this, and have heard several people quote this. Who said it first is not as important as the fact that the main thing has to be the main thing.  When going to a great steak house the steaks have to be great; they are the main thing! Our main courses came as ordered and to the desired temperatures.  While the steaks were good, were they phenomenal?  Stephen’s steak (rib eye) had more fat than I would have expected, and my steak was heavy in the seasoning, particularly salt.  I think a great piece of meat should be able to stand on its own with minimal seasoning.  This is also why I tend to always go with a New York cut versus Jacque who traditionally will order the smallest filet mignon on the menu.  I like the marbling that you typically find in a New York steak; (my cholesterol levels probably don’t prefer it). Jacque likes the tenderness of the filet and the fact that a really good filet could be cut easily with a butter knife.  A restaurant will always score extra points with Jacque if the filet comes wrapped in bacon.

(Jacque's Filet)

Note to self – write a blog about the steak knives.  Some steak houses make a true statement by the knives they give you.  The Keg restaurant in Kelowna, BC, gives you a knife Davey Crockett would have been proud to have carried on the frontiers…but that could be a whole blog on its own.

(Creme Brûlée with lots of spoons)

For our St. Elmo’s dessert, I have one word – no, make that two: Crème Brulee. Jacque is a huge fan of Crème Brulee.  We have had Crème Brulee literally all over the world.  I can’t remember seeing a Crème Brulee on a dessert menu and it not being ordered.  Again, like the rest of the dining experience, we enjoyed sharing the Crème Brulee as our dessert, (one was enough for all of us); it was good, but not phenomenal. 

In closing, if you have never been to St. Elmo’s you should experience it, if not just for the shrimp cocktail.  But the real question is did St. Elmo’s have all the “fire” its reputation should warrant? Would we return as a family next time we are looking for a great steakhouse in Indianapolis? Well, let’s just say, if you need to contact us when we’re there, you will probably find us at the Capitol Grill. 

(The guys in the kitchen always deserve recognition.  I love going to restaurants that allow you to see their hard working kitchen crew.  No matter what you think of the meal, always take a minute to thank these guys on your way out!)