Baltimore Summer Restaurant Week

Summer Restaurant Week is over a month away (July 26 - August 3), but the Web site is up already and there are a ton of participants this time around. Never too early to start planning....

Father's Day Feasting

Dad and I were discussing Chinese pot stickers a couple of weeks back and he expressed his displeasure in dumplings that have overly-thick wrappers. A mouthful of dough isn't nearly as pleasant as a mouthful of filling! I concur, so I suggested that we have some dumplings for Father's Day. I briefly toyed with making them from scratch, but then decided it was easier to buy a couple of bags of different varieties from Asia Foods.

Pork and leek, pork and veg, and pork mini buns. I made a dipping sauce of soy, rice wine vinegar, sesame oil, sugar, and scallions to go with.

As the meal was starting off with an Asian theme, Mr Minx suggested that we do teriyaki meats to follow (Father's Day meals must always contain meat and lots of it, preferably grilled). Minx Bro suggested an accompaniment of stir fried vegetables like the kind one would get at a teppanyaki joint or those Japanese stir fry places in the mall (mushrooms, onions, bean sprouts), and also some grilled zucchini. And of course all of that needed rice.

Here's the meat selection. Top, from left to right: shrimp, pork, chicken. Bottom: beef and duh, zucchini. I marinated the shrimp and beef in a mixture of soy, brown sugar, and garlic. The pork got a bath of soy, brown sugar, and ginger. And the chicken spent some time in a few tablespoons of Thai chili basil paste.

And here it all is on a platter. I'm happy to say that the meal was a success - Dad enjoyed it very much. The only thing I would have changed would be to use chicken breasts rather than thighs next time, as breasts would have cooked more quickly.

The shrimp were my favorite, with the beef being next. Both came from the Belvedere Market (Ceriello's and Ikan, respectively).

Glad you had a good day - I love you, Dad!

The Next Food Network Thtar - Episode 3

Hi, and welcome to this weekth recap of The Next Food Network Thtar. The Minx is working on another athignment, tho I'm your thubthitute blogger, Jeffrey.

Lath week, Adam and Nipa were on thin ithe. Thay tuned to thee what happenth this epithode!

Firth, we went to the Food Network Thudios to find Bobby Flay prethenting our challenge of the day: expreth ourthelves through a potato.

We get thirty mineth to cook a potato dish that representh our culinary point-of-view, and thirty theconth to prethent our dish to the camera, making thure to talk about ourtheves too. Girlth, I'm doing some thnazzy thophisthicated home fries to show off my culinary proweth!

Kelthey made a catherole of raw potatoth with raw pancetta that, let me tell you girl, did NOT impreth those judgeth. And she was perky as hell! Damn girl, reign it in a little!

Nipa made thome damn Indian dish with a funny name that the judgeth liked, but she was all looking at the theiling and her delivery wath, thall we thay, wooden. The judgeth looooved Aaron'th bacon-wrapped potatoth but he theemed a little nervouth.

That young whipperthapper Shane made lumpy old vichythoithe, but his prethentation wathn't bad. And Jennifer put mathed potatoth on pizza? Now that'th some thcary thuff!

My home fries were fine, but those bitch-ath judges didn't theem to agree. I admit I was a little thtiff in my prethentation. They thaid I was "not engaging." Hmpfh.

Litha, all pleathed with her damn creme freth and trout, blabbed on for all of fifteen theconds and then thood there looking like an idiot. Nothing new there.

Tho after that ordeal wath over, we're told we have to create a food product for our next challenge. We get half an hour to shop and then an hour to prepare the item and package up fifty thamples to prethent to food buyers. That's exthiting! And I'm making thome thexy theathoned thalt!

Tho we go to the thtore and Nipa buys up all the cayenne pepper for thome damn peanut theathoning. Peanuth need theathoning? Aaron needed thome cayenne for his apple thider vinaigrette, but he had to use jalapeno inthtead, and girl, he was pithed.

Shane made a thauthe of dried cherrieth and cognac and called it "Cherriac." At leatht, that'th what it thounded like he thaid. Then I thaw the labelth, and they thaid "Cherri-Gac." Gack? Not a pretty word, Shane, thweetie. Maketh me think of children'th cough medicine.

The nexth day, we have to thet up tableth with our producth (in jarth with these ugly-ath labelth) and do a prethentation to food buyerth.

Oh thnap! Martha Thtewart is a thurprise guest judge. When she maketh her entrance, Litha thtarts jumping up and down like a crazy person. Calm down, girl!

Martha goes around on her high horse and thamples our wareth. The only one of us who geth a compliment is Aaron, for hith apple thider vinaigrette. Shane's Cherry-GACK needed thalt. Shoulda uthed thome of my theathoned thalt, girl!

Adam thang a thong for Martha. Knew your BBQ theathoning wath bad, huh?

After our prethentations, Martha and the judges talked trash about uth. When athked whether she would watch Kelthey, she thaid, "I don't know for how long...." Oh thnap again, girl!

Back at the Carriage Houth, we went down to the judging room (what I like to call "the dungeon") to face Thuthie Fogethon, Bob Tuthman, and Bobby Flay. Adam tried to be funny by thaying he wath going to leave the "raw foods movement behind." Oh ha, ha. Crazy Litha cried becauth she got to meet her idol Martha Thtewart. Kelthey cried too because the panel thought she was too perky, too practiced.

I got cathtigated for my theasoned thalt. They thaid it was too much thalt, not enough thteasoning.

Unfortunately, that wath my downfall, and Thuthie athked me to go.

Ha!

more cat pictures

Yeah, you there with the too-tight jeans. This is what you look like.