Sandee’s Lobster Disaster
I refuse to comment on what they called barbecue. I think doing so would re-ignite the feud between the Hatfields and the McCoy’s. Because there is nothing more divisive than the definition of REAL barbecue. And, being from The South, I know better than to get into all of that. So, I’ll just call this challenge grilling and move along.
I really think that Sandee did the lobster a disservice. There is nothing more succulently sweet than lobster that has been grilled perfectly. She had the perfect upscale ingredient and she didn’t even showcase it. If she absolutely had to do the vanilla butter, why not a drawn vanilla flavored butter or even a vanilla butter cream sauce?
I know there are some people who are squeamish about the idea of vanilla with lobster. I’ve never had the pairing myself, but I do know that vanilla in and of itself is not sweet. It can have a kind of “layering” effect if used properly. I liken it to cinnamon or nutmeg or cumin. Its earthy more than sweet.
I also think that if she had grilled the lobster, the fig would not have been so overpowering (since it was also grilled- and there is nothing like grilling to create a common flavor profile). The lobster would have been able to hold its own along side the other ingredients. And if she had split the figs after grilling them, the lobster would be the actual showcase of the dish. Which should have been the point of her choosing lobster.
I don’t know if that was or wasn’t reason enough to send her home at this point in the rule book. I mean, the actual flavor at the judges’ table should count for something. But, since no one said anything about her dish tasting good, I do know that it was a real disservice to the lobster not to really showcase it the way she easily could have.
I think that Sandee could have won that challenge with her ingredients. But, she obviously wasn’t up to them.
Next Time: Don’t tell me about comfort food. I know comfort food and sister, that aint comfort food.
So, I was nominated for a Blogger’s Choice Award. I personally am satisfied with the nomination, because I don’t expect to actually win. I’ve seen my competition. And there is really no contest between my scribbles and the actual food bloggers out there. But it did get me thinking. I started to wonder who I would nominate for this particular award (If I were ever the type of person to nominate anyone for anything).
I read food blogs. I read them because I love food and I love people who love food. I love reading about food experiments and all of the possible outcomes. So, I thought why not write about the food blogs that I really love?
These blogs are in no particular order. They are just the ones that I really visit the most.
- Grub Report: I stumbled upon this one while frequenting a non food-related website, Television without Pity. I am pretty sure that the first post that really got me hooked was this one about sandwiches. Keckler doesn’t post very often to Grub Report, but you can always get a food fix from her recaps of Top Chef.
- Je Mange la Ville: I came across this site by accident. I was more than a little frustrated. See, I had just attempted (and botched) my first attempt at lamb chops. I had overcooked them and the texture just wasn’t right. So I just did a google search for lamb recipes. I found This site. I have been going back ever since.
- Jennifer’s Art and Practice of Cooking Recipes: This site loads kind of funky for me. I’m not sure if there are layout issues or if it just does not like Macintosh browsers. But it is worth scrolling through. The idea of a sweet potato burrito is just to intriguing to ignore. I actually only found out about this site from my comments sections.
- Milky Way Diner: Maybe its the whole Southern thing, but I love this site. I love the fanciness of the food. I am not fancy in any sense of the word. Give me some barbecue or any kind of sandwich, or just some bacon and I am in heaven. But, I always envy the ones who do it right. The ones whose pictures make the food look beautiful and easy. Kevin Bauer does this. And I envy him. But at the same time it gives me hope that I can get a little bit better.
- Pinoy Cook: A Flilipina’s Food, Cooking and Recipes Blog: I can’t say whether its the food or just the pictures that I love about this site. A lot of people like to look at pictures on the internet. Some people look for pictures of celebrities, some look for pictures of technology, and some look for pictures of a sexual nature. I look for pictures of food. And this site always gets my imagination going. Most of the photos are signed by Connie so I can honestly envy the blogger in question and not wonder if the images were taken from somewhere else or if the picture was staged by some pro shop.
There are so many more food sites that I visit, but these are the top ones. These are my go-to sites when I am wanting ideas or feeling like I don’t know if cooking is really my thing. These sites inspire me to cook my own beautiful dishes even if my pictures don’t turn out nearly as nice as these.
I’ve been nominated in the Best Food Blog category of the Blogger’s Choice Awards. Can you believe it? I sure can’t. How exciting to actually be grouped with Bloggers I really admire.
I guess I should ask you guys to go out and vote for me. If you do participate in such things, a vote would be nice. But, just the idea that someone thinks I belong in the category is plenty for me.
So, I went to Barbaritos and ordered what they call a “skinny with sour cream”. There is nothing skinny about this burrito.
Its a spinach tortilla shell stuffed with rice, beans (your choice of black or pinto), chicken, cheese, lettuce tomato, black olives, and sour cream.
The great thing about Barberitos is the way they make it in front of you with fresh ingredients. You get a choice of chicken, beef, fish or tofu. I’ve tried the chicken and the beef. Tofu is next on my list. So far the chicken is way ahead of the beef. I’m not sure about the fish, but I am curious.
Overall, amazingly flavorful and enough for two meals.
Last night, I watched the final episode of the Gilmore Girls. So sad. Sad because that show had become something of a foodie ritual for me. I got hooked on the show via the Television Without Pity recaps. I read the recaps of the first and second season while the third season aired. I caught up by watching the reruns on the Family Channel.
While I was immediately taken in by the charm of Lorelai Gilmore (played by the wonderful Lauren Graham), it was the food that kept me coming back. I’ve discussed the food of the Gilmore girls before. So, I won’t rehash.
I said goodbye to the Gilmore Girls last night by choosing foods I think Lorelai would wholeheartedly approve of.
The Pizza:
The best pizza I have had to date has to be Transmetropolitan’s. I ordered another meat pie (ham, meatballs, and bacon; we don’t do the sausage though). Only this time I added black olives and mushrooms to half. Hubby does not approve of vegetables on pizza hence the compromise.
The Bread:
Transmetropolitan does not make bread sticks. Instead they offer focaccia slices with marinara. This really struck me as the type of appetizer Sookie would have on hand to serve in a pinch. They types of focaccia I’ve tried before were usually a lot more dense that this. It was very light and fluffy. It also had this awesomely crispy outside that was seasoned with olive oil and herbs.
The Chicken Nuggets (not pictured):
Yes. Chicken nuggets. Its in honor of Lorelai people. These weren’t anything special, just some of the 99 cent ones you get from Wendy’s. It was a toss up for me between chicken nuggets and tater tots. The nuggets won for two reasons. First, Wendy’s was closer than Clocked which has the best tater tots bar none. I mean you can get them with pretty much anything you want on them. I generally just go for cheese. So, if I want tater tots, I go to Clocked. The other reason I went with the tater tots was I already had bread and pizza. The tater tots would have really put it over the top with the starch.
The Pop Tarts (not pictured because I loathe Pop Tarts)
Now, I know Pop Tarts are at the top of Lorelai’s favorite foods list. While I love her affinity for pre-packaged processed foods (hello, beef-a-roni!), Pop Tarts is where I draw the line. Even as a kid I found them disgusting. It always reminded me of fake fruit encased in cardboard. Nasty.
You are probably asking yourself if I really ate all of this stuff. You will be happy, or possibly disgusted, to know that I did sample everything- you know, except the Pop Tarts, those things are disgusting. But the beauty of something like this is the left overs. I’m a huge fan of left overs. Besides it was a one time deal. It was my goodbye.
If you know the show, you are aware of the “Lorelai Paradox”. Its Lorelai’s explanation for how she and Rory (played by the beautiful and potentially talented Alexis Bledel) could eat like this all the time and still look like models. I’ve come to the conclusion that it isn’t the “Lorelai Paradox” its the fact that its a television show and there’s no way either of them ever ate something like this in the entire 7 year run of the series. I only sampled and woke up with a food hang over. Seriously, I woke up feeling completely full and still tired. I’m pretty sure the left overs will go over really well with my co-workers though.
So, thank you Gilmore Girls. Thanks for giving me that one hour a week to fantasize about a magical place called Stars Hollow filled with quirky and endearing characters. Thank you for Rory and Emily and Richard. Thank you for Lorelai Gilmore. I haven’t always liked her and I loved having a television show that made me question my loyalty to its lead character.
Most of all thank you for the food.
