Pumpkin Spice Coffee

- The Fall equivalent to eggnog.

Kindai Tuna

(new Kindai tuna dish at Lacroix being plated)

Blue Fin tuna is in danger. Unsustainable fishing practices have rendered it nearly extinct- yet the overfishing continues- it's just too damn good. Recently, light has appeared at the end of the tunnel.Researchers at Kinki University in Keten, Setouchi-cho, Oshima-gun, Kagoshima Prefecture in Japan have begun to farm raise blue fin tuna- literally farm raise them. The tuna isn't caught from the wild, the eggs are born in the laboratory. Moreover, the tuna are raised without drugs, on organic feed, and are given plenty of room to move around, unlike the majority of farmed fish. Only a few, however, are shipped to the U.S. each week.
The chefs at Lacroix were ecstatic, as they were able to get their hands on some a few weeks ago. The Chef de Cuisine approached me shaking, "I'm horny right now holding this fish." And a beautiful piece of fish it was. With ultimate reverence he explained to me how he got lucky, and was able to get the fish only cause "he knows somebody." "The Kobe Beef we get is some of the best you can buy, and it costs around $40 a pound. This Kindai costs about 64."
He held out a piece for me. Shivers ran down my spine. Lacroix is a very upscale restaurant. The chefs have seen everything. I don't think I've ever seen them so excited about a product. I took the piece and placed it on my tongue. At once I tasted oily, velvety, slightly sweet. A wonderful fishiness was apparent. The fish melted in my mouth, before I was ready to let it go. I heard another chef make a joke about using it for tartare. I laughed out loud. Though the title does the tuna little justice, I hereby pronounce Kindai Tuna, tuna on roids. x10 x10 x10 x10.

Pulled Pork

I had never smoked. I'd heard it's addictive, that once you start you never stop. Supposedly it relaxes you, makes you feel good. Oh, I almost forgot to tell you. I'm talking about smoking on a grill.

At the time we were working on a project in English class pertaining to the novel Lord of the Flies by William Golding. I hope you've read it, it's an interesting novel, but if you haven't it's basically about a group of boys stranded on an island, who go crazy and hunt pigs and paint their faces and such. Our project consisted of choosing 6 smaller projects from a list of about 12. One of the options was to make up your own project related to the novel. At once I thought about food, but then hesitated. The previous week we had been asked to write our thoughts down about a specific chapter. When it was my turn to present to the class, I showed a picture of a pig on a spit and described it "a large Berkshire hog, roasting over an open flame, the meat cooking evenly as it roasts on the spit, and the fat slowly rendering out to produce wonderfully crispy crackling." My deviance from the topic (yet wonderful imagery) produced a stern look from the teacher. What would she think if I tried to relate smoking a pork shoulder to the novel?

"You know how they cook pig for food in Lord of the Flies, well, could I bring you a pulled pork sandwich as a project?" She excitedly obliged! Great!

I bought a pork shoulder the previous day then spent 8 hours on Sunday changing wood chips, making barbecue sauce, and allowing the hickory smoke to permeate my nostrils as my shoulder cooked down to tenderness. During the last 2 hours I basted the shoulder with a "mop" of white vinegar, apple cider vinegar, brown sugar, salt, pepper, and cayenne.

Finally I pulled it out, let it cool, then tossed the fork aside and pulled it apart with my fingers. I tossed the meat with some barbecue sauce, heaped it on a hamburger bun, then brought it in to school the next day for one happy teacher.

Bread Revisited

A few months ago I thought I was big daddy in the house. I could make Thomas Keller's brioche with ease. I was ready to start signing autographs.

And then came the baguette.

Just look at that disgusting piece of _____. Don't say it. Don't call it bread, cause it's not. I couldn't live with such a failure. I had to improve my bread.

And so I scoured the Internet, and my local Borders, reading all I could on sites like The Fresh Loaf, and Bread Cetera, and books like The Bread Baker's Apprentice, to understand the fundamentals of bread making.

Once I believed I had learned enough, I ended my hiatus and began to bake bread once again. First came this focaccia from Ideas In Food, which I've baked probably 5 times now (and in my opinion perfected),and then came this more complicated batard, which is actually 100% whole wheat sandwich bread that I shaped into a batard. I have to say, I'm pretty proud of how my bread baking skills have improved. In the near future I will conquer my nemesis, the baguette.

Recipe from The Bread Baker's Apprentice by Peter Reinhart

soaker (mix together fully one day ahead, cover with plastic, and let sit at room temp)
1 cup whole wheat flour
3/4 cup water

poolish (mix together fully one day ahead, cover with plastic, and let sit in the refrigerator)
1.5 cups whole wheat flour
¼ tsp instant yeast
¾ cup water

Dough
2 cups whole wheat
1 1/3 tsp salt
1 tsp instant yeast
2 tbs honey
1 egg (optional)

1. Remove the poolish and let sit at room temp for one hour before making the dough.

2. In the bowl of an electric mixer, mix together the flour salt and yeast.

3. Cut the poolish and soaker into small 1 square inch pieces then mix into the dough with a paddle.

4. Add the honey and the egg, mixing with a paddle until the mixture become a rough dough. Transfer to a cutting board and knead for about 10-15 until a tacky but not sticky dough is formed. Transfer to a bowl, cover with plastic and let rise for two hours.

5. For sandwich loaves, divide the dough in two equal pieces and place in oiled loaf pans, then let rise again for about 90 minutes covered in plastic.

6. Bake at 350 for 45-60 minutes until the dough is golden brown on all sides and sounds hollow when tapped.

Let cool, then enjoy!

My very controversial hierarchy of Halloween candy

Reese's is the best.

Smoked Black Pepper

Marvelous on meats, perfect on poultry, and ehmazing on eggs. Smoked black pepper is one of my favorite spices. This pepper has such character. It's so pungent, so flavorful. Be wary, don't use on fish, and use sparingly on eggs. This spice craves juxtaposition, and the only foods that do it justice are bold, flavorful foods that can stand up to it's wonderful pungency. Think steaks, braised meats, and barbecued meats, but don't let your imagination stop there. The possibilities are endless.

This Morning's Breakfast

There's not much better than egg, bread, butter and fleur de sel.