The Green Apron

Thanks to my Monkey I’m sitting here watching Michael Jackson’s This Is It a day before it’s released publicly. It really is amazing and I’m not even a quarter way in. Please don’t think I’m shamelessly plugging the video. I wouldn’t consider myself a fan so to speak. Yeah some of MJ’s music is in my iTunes library, but I’ve never bought an album or single. I only know the hits. Even then it’s only the big ones from the 80’s. What I can say more than anything is you get see him as a person. He is the boss calling the shots, however he’s doing it all for the fans. He cared and wanted to make the experience of this show something to never be forgotten. The theatrical and 3-D aspect of ‘Thriller’ would have been awesome to see live. I mean, who’s done something like this at a concert before!?!?  The heavily Gilda-influenced ‘Smooth Criminal’ was my favorite. Boundaries were being pushed with this show, “because that’s what Michael’s about.”

Yesterday I wrote about one of my favorite winter recipes. However, I started by rambling about making cornbread first. Figured I might want to share that recipe considering I half-assedly mentioned how to make it. A box mix can always be purchased and doctored up, but really, cornbread is easy.

MY CORNBREAD

INGREDIENTS
1 ½ cups cornmeal
2 ½ cups milk
2 cups all-purpose flour + 2 tablespoons
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
2/3 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 ounce tequila
½ cup vegetable oil
1/8 cup green chili, chopped
1/8 cup frozen corn kernels
2 tablespoons butter

DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 400 degrees  and grease a 9×13 inch baking pan. In a small bowl, combine cornmeal and milk; let stand for 5 minutes. In a large bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, salt and sugar. Mix in the cornmeal/milk, eggs, tequila and oil until smooth.
In a frying pan add the chilies and frozen corn. Saute with butter until edges start to brown. Add to cornmeal mixture. Pour batter into prepared pan. Bake in preheated oven for 30 to 35 minutes, or until a knife inserted into the center of the cornbread comes out clean. Serve with lots of butter and honey!

Soups, and soup-like meals, are welcomed in this house when the weather hovers in the 30’s and 40’s. While this recipe is easy enough to make it does take some time and tending to. I strongly recommend serving this chili with some homemade cornbread. I like to reserve a little of the green chili and white corn for the process. I pan fry about one tablespoon each with butter and add it to the batter before baking. Just a thought…. And if a little encouragement is needed check out the tune ‘Cornbread’ by Dave Matthews and Tim Reynolds. “…You ain’t ever had my cornbread, little bit of heaven and little bit a ‘oh yeah….”

WHITE CHILI WITH CHICKEN

INGREDIENTS
1 pound white beans
2 pounds chicken
1 medium white onion, roughly chopped
1 medium red onion, roughly
2 tablespoons butter
6 cups vegetable broth
12 ounces chopped green chili
2 teaspoons whole cumin
1 tablespoon oregano
2 tablespoons crushed garlic
1 lime
1 small bunch cilantro, roughly chopped
1 tablespoon salt
1 tablespoon pepper
1 cup frozen white corn
1/4 cup bacon, fried and crumbled

DIRECTIONS
Start by soaking the white beans overnight. As for the chicken, I like to use boneless thigh meat. There’s more flavor (thanks to the extra fat) compared to white meat. Cheaper, too. Brown the pieces in some flour, salt and pepper. Once cooled, chop it all up.

In a large pot, saute the onions in butter. Once they’re translucent, add the remaining ingredients, beans and chicken. Bring to a boil, then let simmer a 2-3 hours, stirring occasionally. I like to have extra broth on hand in case the chili gets a bit thick. That’s it. This should easily serve 8 people.

Suffice to say I’m easing into the year. Unfortunately I haven’t wanted to really play on the laptop. Even checking my E-mail hasn’t been much of a priority. This doesn’t mean I’ve been completely lazy. Would you believe I’ve already finished and filed my taxes? Fat Refund, I hope to see you soon my friend. I’ve also planned a getaway to Portland (Oregon) in less than two weeks to see another friend, SugarBush & Co. I am really, really excited! Now as I look outside on a beautiful “grey” day it makes me think about the friends I’ll be seeing soon. I’ve already expressed an interest in cooking for them and thankfully it was well received.

Pepper and spice! This is our concern, dude. There are a few sensitive stomachs in the mix and I don’t want to upset them. This doesn’t mean going bland. Flavor will not be sacrificed. In the most recent issue of Wine & Spirits magazine I found a recipe for Oxtail with Malbec Reduction. What got me about this dish, other than the photo provided, was the secondary recipe: Potato-Cauliflower Puree. Ever had one? It’s like having that bite of ultra-rich-butter-laden-baked potato right there with the steak. Um yes, more please.

So I think I’ll probably do something very similar to the overall dish. I know the group loves wine and reduction sauces are simple. They’re also easy to infuse and really let fly. I’ll probably go with a Malbec by Gozzo (Argentina). It’s about $10 a bottle and awesome. Great to drink and definitely good enough to cook with. Probably nix the oxtail. Not sure how available it is and don’t have the time to cook it. Lightly salted strips of grilled steak will probably do nicely. Oui? Add a touch of fresh rosemary with the plate to show the violet and blackberry coming from the wine? Oui! O si? It is a Malbec after all. Serve it all with some hot garlic bread and I’m set. Enough blathering. Try this puree some time. It’s relatively simple and should serve about 6 people.

POTATO-CAULIFLOWER PUREE

INGREDIENTS
4 medium potatoes, peeled and diced
1 small bunch cauliflower, in florets and diced
1 teaspoon garlic salt
½ stick butter, cut into cubes
½ and ½

DIRECTIONS
Over high heat bring a large pot of salted water to boil. Add the potatoes and cauliflower and cook until tender. Drain and beat with next two ingredients. Add just enough cream to make a smooth puree. Serve warm.

Okay, now that we know what MexiNog is and how it’s made here’s something to make with it. About a year ago I tried this cake for the first time. It didn’t necessarily taste like eggnog…just rich, good sweetness. And moist! Don’t forget the fresh whipped cream for a frosting. Nor the strawberries. I think they really are the ‘icing on the cake’. The mint is optional, but I highly suggest it.

ROMPOPE CAKE

INGREDIENTS

*Rompope Syrup
1 ½ cups rompope
1 cup Evaporated Milk
1 cup Sweetened Condensed Milk
1 cup Whipping Cream

*Cake
5 large eggs
3/4 cups sugar
3/4 cups cake flour
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

*Frosting
1 ½ cups Whipping Cream
3 tablespoons sugar
1 pint strawberries halved
Fresh Mint

DIRECTIONS
FOR THE SYRUP
Whisk all ingredients in medium bowl to blend. Pour half of liquid into heavy large saucepan. Bring to boil. Reduce heat to medium and boil gently until mixture is reduced to 1 1/4 cups, stirring frequently, about 17 minutes. Whisk in remaining half of liquid.

FOR THE CAKE
Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter and flour 8-inch-diameter cake pan with 2-inch-high sides. Line bottom of pan with parchment paper; butter and flour parchment. Whisk eggs and sugar to blend in large bowl. Set bowl over saucepan of simmering water (do not allow bottom of bowl to touch water). Using electric mixer, beat mixture constantly until thick, pale yellow, and tripled in volume, about 9 minutes. Remove bowl from over water. Continue to beat mixture until cool, about 6 minutes. Sift flour over egg mixture in 3 additions, gently folding in each addition. Transfer 1 cup batter to small bowl; fold in melted butter in 3 additions. Gently fold into batter in large bowl, being careful not to deflate batter. Transfer batter to prepared pan. Bake cake until top is deep golden and tester inserted into center comes out clean, about 25 minutes. Cool cake in pan 10 minutes. Turn cake out onto deep platter at least 2 inches larger than cake. Remove parchment paper. Using wooden skewer, pierce cake all over top, spacing piercings 1/2 inch apart and pressing skewer down to bottom of cake. Gradually pour half of lukewarm rompope syrup over top of hot cake, spreading over cake with spatula and allowing rompope syrup to soak into cake before adding more. Invert cake onto another large deep platter. Pierce cake all over top, spacing piercings 1/2 inch apart and pressing skewer down to bottom of cake. Gradually pour remaining rompope syrup over cake, spreading with spatula and allowing syrup to soak in before adding more. Let cake stand at room temperature until cooled completely, about 2 hours, occasionally spooning up any rompope syrup that collects on bottom of platter and drizzling syrup over cake. (Can be made 1 day ahead. Cover and refrigerate.)

FOR THE FROSTING
Using an electric mixer, beat cream and sugar in large bowl until peaks form. Spread frosting over cake. Garnish with halved berries and mint.

I love eggnog. I typically have one bottle during the holidays and call it good. I prefer to buy the good, local stuff from the grocery store and add in my own liquor. This year was different due to the job. We’re selling four different types of eggnog. Well we had to try them…. And bonus—they’re already spiked! No surprise that I like the one with brandy as the only culprit. The other brands had 4-5 hard alcohols each. They tasted like paint thinner to me. Also included this year was one new product for me. So much more creamy and rich. Rompope. It’s Mexican eggnog, basically.  Say it with me: rom-poe-pay. We carry a brand called “Santa Clara”. And how can you go wrong? There’s a nun on the bottle!

I’ve had customers in before looking for this product and had never been able to help. Turns out it’s somewhat of a traditional drink south of the border. No wonder the farther north you get the less people know about it. Or sell it for that matter. Because it can be so difficult to find I want to give you this recipe. Also because it’s needed for the recipe I’ll post tomorrow. So this is my version of Rompope!

ROMPOPE

INGREDIENTS:
6 cups milk
1 ½ cups sugar
1/2 cinnamon stick
10 egg yolks
1/3 cup blanched almonds
1 fresh vanilla bean
3/4 cup gold rum
3/4 cup amaretto

DIRECTIONS:
Simmer (not boil) milk, sugar and cinnamon approximately 10 minutes. Discard the cinnamon stick. Process the almonds in a food processor until a paste forms. Whisk the paste into the milk mixture, then the beans from the scraped vanilla and set it aside to cool a little. You still want it warm for the next step. Just above room temp. Too hot and you’ll be making scrambled eggs. Don’t forget to add the scraped vanilla pod to your sugar bag.

Beat the egg yolks until creamy, and slowly add in the milk mixture a little at a time, continually mixing slowly. Mix in the rum and amaretto, serve chilled.

This year on January 1st, just after midnight I confided in a friend that I wanted to change my name.  I said it was something I wanted to complete before the year ended.  Mind you it’s nothing on a whim.  This is something I’ve considered for quite a while.  And I’m not doing anything too odd.  I’m not changing things to be artistic or unique.  I only want my given name to be used, Cameron Aguilera.  Hehe.  Actually the original last name is Smith.  Cameron Smith.

You see when I was a child my folks were divorced, like a lot of families this day and age.  By the time I was starting school and whatnot Mom had since remarried and started her new life.  Along with this was my last name changing for “easier family reasons”.  I lived with her and my stepfather, with only slim visitation rights to my biological father.  So this meant 99% of my time was at this one household.  Of course it somewhat made sense to use the same last name at the time.  All school documents were listed with “Loggans”, a social security card was even issued as such.  Legally this was the name I thought I would use until the day I died.  However…legally my name was never changed.  Nor was I adopted.  Now after almost 30 years I understand a permanency has taken place.  Legally I could use this without problem.

My problem however is that “Loggans” isn’t me.  For almost a decade I haven’t seen eye to eye with my mother or stepfather.  Unfortunately for you that’s all I’m going to say.  I still have enough respect for these people not to spread the family trash out here for anyone to pick through.  For another reason this is NOT being done is the stellar job the male sperm donor contributed to my life.  I have a choice and I’m doing this for me.  I know my life has seen so many different roads and different options.  I’ve done quite a lot I think.  A lot of it incorrectly by some standards.  Adventurous by mine.  Now I think it’s time to ponder what’s really ahead and not just think about what’s for dinner tonight.  Part of that is a reboot.  And let’s face it; it doesn’t get more personal than my name.

I found a legal site online called CivilTree.com ‘Covering Specific Branches of Law’.  This site covered everything from Trademarks to Home to Name Changes and more.  It was so easy to use for my purposes.  I typed out a few forms while sitting in my pj’s, submitted my credit card info and presto! everything was submitted.  My application should be processed in 24-48 hours.  How could I go wrong with a site that promotes itself as such:

Name Change with CivilTree.com

You save time and money.

Legal petitions are processed within 24-48 hours.

CivilTree’s legal petitions are court approved for your state.

Actual associates working on each case, not computers.

Orders Include assistance with the changing of your birth certificate. (Don’t need to.)

Professionally reviewed prior to shipment.

Call your associate at anytime for additional information.

100% satisfaction guaranteed or your money back.

CivilTree offers exceptional customer service. Call us at anytime.

Then after it is processed and approved I can change my social security card, driver license or any other legal document I need.  One funny thing in all this, I actually have my original birth certificate in the name of Cameron James Smith.  So after all this is finalized you’ll need a new E-mail address to reach me at.  I’ve decided on theoriginalsmitty@gmail.com.  Cheers.  Thanks a lot.

We all have our favorite drinks. Even if not alcoholic there’s something for everybody. For me it’s an Irish Car Bomb. Similar to a boilermaker, but made with all Irish ingredients. Most typically used are Jameson, Bailey’s and Guinness. You have to make fast work of this beer cocktail due to curdling. I think that’s the reason I like it. Not the curdling part, but the quickness of the drink. You see I’m the type of person that can nurse a drink for hours. No joke. So when I’m drinking with friends I now have a way to keep in the game. Because it’s not really fun to be the only sober person in a group three sheets to the wind.

About a year ago a friend shared this recipe with me. Homemade Irish Cream! This recipe makes a little over 5 cups. My only problem is the raw egg component. The recipe makes over 5 cups and I worry about spoilage before I can get through everything. I’m going to try and use a powdered egg for substitute. I know it sounds odd, but pasteurization has its rewards. The product reviews were positive as well. Sounds like the maker, Honeyville Farms, has everything in powdered form, strawberries to cheese. Interesting and creepy… Anyhow, here’s the original recipe with the real eggs kept in play.

IRISH CREAM

INGREDIENTS
1 ¾ cup Irish whiskey
1 can sweetened condensed milk, 14 ounces
1 cup heavy whipping cream
4 large eggs
2 tablespoons chocolate syrup
2 teaspoons instant coffee
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
½ teaspoon almond extract

DIRECTIONS
Blend and chill for at least 4 hours before using.

Ahh, a whole 12 hours before I have to be back at work. Then only a few more days until I can sleep in and try to remember my name. I’m a little tired and running thin right now. Here’s the skinny, I made a deal with the devil to have the recent holiday off work. Yes, we’re open on Thanksgiving. In return I was scheduled for an 11 day stretch around it. I think my mind is slowly starting to disintegrate. Pepsi will get me through. It’s my nectar. However tired I am, it’s all worth it. You see at work we’re only closed one day a year, Christmas. While it’s not required that all staff work every holiday, it’s somewhat expected for the few in November and December. I however had a plan to escape. I offered to work the Sunday before and after turkey day. I also had to open the store on Black Friday. The boss went for it. Here’s where karma payed off–I was the only manager this year to have the full day off.

“Quid pro quo, Clarice.” Tit for tat. It’s also my way of saying thanks. I don’t do things for friends to necessarily get something back. It’s not just a favor for a favor. On the other hand if something considerate is done on my behalf, I need to acknowledge it. In this case I decided to give back to everyone else working last Thursday. How does Cinnamon-Chocolate “French Toast” sound? As thanks to my boss I woke up at 5 a.m. to start his breakfast. This was my first of eight dishes that were going to be made that day. Of course that early in the morning things didn’t turn out exactly as planned. Four hours later and it wasn’t ready! I didn’t freak, I manipulated. When things didn’t cook like they were supposed to, I fixed a margarita and rethought things.

This is another great crock-pot dish with a twist. The “French Toast” is actually more of a bread pudding. Directions for the recipe called for setting the unbaked casserole in a water bath within the crock-pot. I checked ahead of time to make sure the two pieces fit together as needed. What I didn’t check was that the lid fit over everything securely. I never noticed the steam coming up for four hours. The dish wasn’t quite done when I finally checked in. I couldn’t bring them raw, sugary eggs and solid chunks of chocolate. I decided to throw it in the oven for 30 minutes or so. I was already behind schedule but refused to be done in so early in the day. What could I lose, right? After transferring the casserole I got to work on the topping. Damn it. Foiled again. I didn’t have enough sugar to make the whipped cream. Haha! I did have enough for some sliced strawberries to top it all off. It all came together really well in the end. I think everyone at work liked it. There was only one criticism from my boss. “This would be totally complete if there were bacon.” Or fava beans…

“That is when the world will end.” Funny, that’s almost exactly the same amount of time on my first 5k. Now let’s skip back almost 2 years. The day was no different than any other when I worked downtown. This means I had forgot my lunch and had to go out. Figured between my iPod and the Onion, I could drown the world out. It worked for a few minutes until I read something that I found completely exciting. Production had been started for S. Darko. The sequel to Donnie Darko. Don’t get too excited, it ended up going directly to video stores. Not even once in theaters. Not yet at least. Notice the all the time references in these past few sentences? Remember the first. It’s most important…

EXPOSITION: I love movies, especially sci-fi and horror. I like 90 minute escapes from reality. Show me something that shouldn’t be there. Let me imagine something wonderful and ridiculous. Take me away… And just because I mentioned those two particular genres doesn’t mean that everything I watch is trash. But yeah, I’ll freely admit sometimes I like to watch the straight-to-DVD-and-soon-to-be-forgotten pure sh*t. So Donnie Darko is a movie that no one can give a definite feel for. It hits so many genres. Maybe it’s a creepy sci-fi with some drama thrown in. Maybe it’s the oddest coming of age story I’ve ever seen on the silver screen. One thing is for sure, it’s become a cult hit and one of my personal favorites since it came out 8 years ago. It has amazing visuals, a haunting score and Drew Barrymore behind it all. Her company, Flower Films, worked on the production. Cheers. She also plays a small role in the film, but it’s one that seems so real. The entire cast was spot on in my opinion. For those that have never seen the movie (or those that never understood it’s main themes), know that there are two versions. The obvious theatrical and director’s cut. I think the DC is the way to go. The differences here make it much, much easier to unravel some of the mystery.

This new movie (available at Target for $9.99) centers on Donnie’s younger sister, roughly 7 years later. The “S.” stands for Samantha. I vaguely remember the initial blurb I read saying the movie was supposed to be about her having strange visions while on a cross country road trip with her boyfriend. Well, it didn’t end up that way. She was made darker and more distant than I could have guessed. She’s also running from her family. What’s really cool is it’s the same actress from the original movie. Our little “Sparkle Motion” has blossomed into the “Frank” of this film. Similar themes are used of course. Teenage angst and the idea of God come up again. The creepy mask is here, too. And time. Time is everything. The biggest difference in this flick is that multiple people are screwing with it. This means they’re also messing with those that live and die.

Here’s the fat, this is why you should really watch it… In ‘Donnie’s’ movie, God and the meaning of life are discussed in the context of therapy. In the new tale there’s a character to represent religion and God. She claims to have a “personal relationship” with the higher being. It’s none other than my favorite showgirl, Elizabeth Berkley! She’s never ceased to amaze us with painfully, outrageous character performances. Watch for her as Trudy. She has the hots for Jesus and funniest line in the movie. Really? Can she make worse decisions? So grab the DVD and press play. In Zero Hours, Thirty-Seven Minutes and Fifty-Seven Seconds you will be witness Ms. Berkley’s commanding performance. The sequel is nowhere near as good as the first, but I think it’s definitely worth watching if interested. Don’t doubt your commitment to Sparkle Motion. I had to know how the story continued. I had to look through the cellar door.

Luckily enough I was invited to a great champagne seminar recently for work. I enjoy drinking the bubbly but had no idea how much there was to learn. We tasted a dozen different bottles and then blind tasted 6 more. Blind tasting consists of sampling when the bottle is concealed from you. You observe the wine for colors, perceived aromas and flavors to try a pinpoint the type of varietal(s), location of origin and possibly even the vintage. The two grapes primarily used now are Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. For me this is hard enough, then throw in the fact they’re all from Champagne. The group’s reaction was quite surprising for this section of the afternoon. Out of the 6 blinds, the two most sh*t-canned were some of the biggest sellers on the American market. Funny how we’re taught / trained to like some things.

What I found most interesting was the little history lesson I was given. In 1911, the French actually rioted over their most prized commodity. This is what I learned. At the turn of the century, almost 50 acres in the Aube were planted with Arbanne, Gamay Noir and Petite Meslier. You should know the Aube is the largest region in Champagne. At this time the Aube producers turned to both Champagne and Burgundy for inclusion within their respective AOC’s. Neither region wanted them. In 1908, the French government stepped in and decided which grapes could be used in Champagne and which areas had the right to use the area’s namesake on their bottles. The Aube was completely left out. This infuriated the growers of the region, especially because many of the biggest producers were using grapes from area to fortify their bubbles. Doesn’t seem fair to be excluded when your product is a major component of some of these other makers. So it had to happen. Angry demonstrators erupted in 1911 and the people of Aube marched to Cumieres, Damery and Ay to burn and destroy cellars. The area was declared a war zone! Over 40,000 troops were called in to calm everything down. Finally in 1927, legality brought the Aube back into Champagne’s arms under a reclassification. This designation finally allowed for the producers to use the designation of “Champagne” again.

For an area smaller than Maryland there are so many rules and regulations. These become suspect to some and always seem to be causing some sort of headache. I think most should relax and just open a bottle. To me champagne is about fun and friends. Let’s the bubbles tickle your nose. Add in a little St. Germain. Remember that stuff? With the holidays coming up I’ve started reading Champagne for Dummies. Yes it really helps as half the customers next month will be buying at least one bottle with each transaction. All right, that may be a bit much. But I do know our store will go through well over 1,000 bottles before the year’s end.