Wednesday, April 1, 2009

2nd Round part 2

1 Bacon versus 9 pastrami
Let's go head to head: both bacon and pastrami are smoked. Both are cured. Bacon is fattier. Bacon wins.

11 smoked salmon versus 13 short ribs
I absolutely love both of these contenders, but there's just nothing like short ribs braising away in your dutch oven, perfuming your house, and then finally eating them, and watching them fall apart when pierced with a fork. I could go on....

14 pork belly versus 12 duck confit
The texture of the duck confit just makes it for me. The crispy skin, the soft, pull-apart meat. Ahhh. Pork belly you're still great in my book, but duck confit wins.

7 fried chicken versus 2 filet mignon
Because I think I have soul, fried chicken wins. Extra crispy please.

On to the desserts

16 carrot cake versus 9 cinnamon bun
Head to head: both are great with cream cheese frosting, both are moist, cinnamon buns smell infinitely better. Cinnamon buns win.

6 apple pie versus 13 pecan pie
Ahhhh the great pie showdown. I love that brown sugar and crunch you get from pecan pie, but, I'm American, and I've been making apple pies with grams ever since I was five. AP wins.

3 choco chip cookies versus 12 cheesecake
I gotta go with the classic, the treat that fills kid's lunches, the treat that everyone loves, the treat that would make cheesecake better if added to it. Choco chip cookies win in a bigtime blowout!

10 fudge versus 2 oreos
Many people were surprised that oreos beat dark chocolate in the last round. They'll be glad to see that cream-filled cookie go down in this round. Sorry oreos, even you can't compete with dense, rich, vanilla fudge, slightly melting in my hand as I eat it on the beach. Fudge is half the reason I look forward to summer. 10 percent is Mac and Mancos, 5 percent is Kohr Bros frozen custard, 5 percent is girls in bikinis, 25 percent is no school, and the last 5 is other. Back on topic, fudge wins.

11 comments:

cookingat11 said...

"Fudge is half the reason I look forward to summer. 10 percent is Mac and Mancos, 5 percent is Kohr Bros frozen custard, 5 percent is girls in bikinis, 25 percent is no school, and the last 5 is other. Back on topic, fudge wins"
For me summer is about that stuff, but this year im going to San Francisco, so im trying to convince my mom to let me go to the French Laundry, but she says she wont let a minor go to a restaurant alone. Any sugestions to help would be very gladly appreciated.

Anonymous said...

cookingat11: be prepared to compromise. Unless there is a large Trust Fund in your name, it will be the Parental Currency Tree that will be funding it. Two adults and one minor will be one weeks pay at The French Laundry. Look at Ad Hoc or Bouchon for a Keller experience. He has set himself at some affordable places.
After Keller, look at the classics like Alice Waters and fresh seafood on the wharf and listen to what the "money people" want to do. Create a list of places you want to eat, and have it handy whenever meal time rolls around.
Research the local bakers (sourdough) and delis. Don't forget the ethnic flavors that you will not find elsewhere. Lunch in Chinatown can be an amazing adventure in a dumpling parlor. Walk to oriental food markets. Once again, this kind of activity has to be fun for all the people you are traveling with. Knowing what your traveling companions like, is the key to lining up their interests with yours. Unfortunately, at 11, you are limited to others' agendas. Enjoy!

And Nick, there has to be another 5% allocated for those same girls in the air conditioned produce section of your local grocer, buying mangoes and grapes.

cookingat11 said...

craig, actually I do have the money to pay for myself at TFL. Thanks for the suggestions. I will definitely look at Ad Hoc and Bouchon.

Anonymous said...

Man, these gigs as 11 and 16 year-olds are more lucrative than I remember. I would have to plan around a mortgage payment to hit TFL. But I would also have to cover wine pairings, which is not showing up on your tab, cookingat11.

e said...

cookingat11...you are 11, go with your parents. If they know how much you love food and cooking (which I really, really hope you do!) they will want to go with you and share the awesome experience! Though you don't neccessarily have to share your food with them... :)

Mandoline said...

Apple's got to be the big winner -- so versatile, varied, can be sweet and savory, dessert or entree.

Trig said...

Only 5% goes to girls in bikinis?? You're clearly not hitting the right beaches pal! ;-)

Tags said...

What percent of fudge is girls eating fudge in bikinis?

Nick N said...

cooking at 11: good luck with that! I hope you get to go.

Trig: I really scaled down that percentage cause my whole family reads this.

Savory Tv said...

Brilliant! I agree on all counts with the exception of the filet mignon. Cheers!

Anonymous said...

<< Savory Tv said...
Brilliant! I agree on all counts with the exception of the filet mignon. Cheers!>>

I would almost agree, here. Fried Chicken at its best will beat Filet Mignon, but the percentage of fried chicken that is below par makes Filet Mignon a sure thing. Most cooks that serve FiletM have a respect for the "price tag" and don't do to beef that which Col. Sanders did to chicken. Fried chicken has become an economy product. A large percentage of the cooks serving it have no respect for seasoning, crunch, and consistently cooked meat. Proportionately, there is a whole lot less BAD FILET MIGNON floating around in a world of Popeye/KFC franchises not to mention Banquet frozen atrocities and the cafeterias which we encounter that offer oven-fried blandness.
In a perfect world, Fried Chicken wins every time. The Mass Market has screwed up the definition of Fried Chicken as a category, and some grandmothers are pretty pissed! Milk gravy on real biscuits is always good cheering the team on to victory. Mid-August Michigan corn (on the cob- HEAVILY BUTTERED)fills out the line-up for a great Sunday afternoon. Your choice of beverage may vary...