Mayhaw Man

Here area few Malt Liquor Reviews. And while you are reading them you can direct your browser over to The Morning 40 Federation. and have a little music while you enjoy your finely crafted malt beverage. When we came up with Andygator @ Abita I decided to enter it into the Great American Beer Festival and in the process also tried to get them to open up a new category-Premium American Malt Liquor. This was not exactly a new idea. They had opened categories in the past for people who made stuff up pretty much just to get a medal. Not only did they not see the humor in this, but I recieved a letter telling me that our attempt to do this was being viewed as them as a poke at the manufacturers of fine Malt Liquor Beverages, who view their product as a fine beverage that appeals to all sections of the population. What a joke! The beer industry knows what they are doing and they know who they are marketing the stuff to-College kids and poor people looking for a buzz. To imply anything else is simply not the truth. Incidentally, I collect very little breweriana, but over the years I have collected some excellent Malt Liquor Regalia, including a fabulous backlit wall sign with Billy Dee Williams as the centerpiece. I also have a lovely St Ides Poster featuring a very young Snoop on a very cool low rider bike.

I used to live around the corner on Pine when we first got married and would stop at Plum St. Snoballs on my way to work at Carrollton Station. Plum St is also the official purveyor of snoballs at the Jazz Fest.

I am having dinner at Upperline Wednesday night (20th Anniversary-my choice-I could have chosen anywhere,, but Upperline might be the best spot in New Orleans for a quiet, romantic type dinner). Anybody been lately? Got any favorite dishes? Let me know. I am trying to get out of a rut (although not an unpleasant one) of ordering my favorite things on my favorite menus EVERYTIME I eat somewhere. Help me out here.

We call them Snowballs here in New Orleans. And they are nothing short of a lifesaver on a long hot summer afternoon. The above link has a pretty good explanation We actually have two companies that exist to do nothing but make the machine that turns blocks of clear ice into FINELY SHAVEN SNOW LIKE ICE. NOT HUNKS OF ICE OUT OF A MACHINE> THESE ARE NOT SNO CONES LIKE YOU FIND AT SOME COUNTY FAIR-THIS IS IMPORTANT STUFF-PAY ATTENTION! The best, by far, in my opinion is located on the downtown/lakeside corner of the 4800 block of Tchopitoulas St. Hansen's Sno Bliz has been run by the Hansens since the Thirties and they are still there everyday that they are open (Thursday -Sun 1-7). The flavors are wonderful, including a couple of tart flavors that can really wake you up on a steamy aftrnoon (mmmm, lemonade with condensed milk- can you say delicious?). The reason that these are far and above the rest has to do with the ice. Mr Hansen has a machine that he built himself 60 something years ago and it makes the FINEST shaved ice in town. Just like frost off of a winshield. Dry, with no real water weight to it and as light as a feather. The perfect vehicle to soak up a nectar cream sno ball or maybe a blueberry (my children's favorite when they were little-turns their teeth, their clothes, their tongues, your car seat, their strollers, and everything else that they come into contact with permanently blue). Here is a good view of an ice shaving machine by Sno Wizard. These guys make the best of the commercial models and in the hands of a caring and professional sno ball master they can churn out some pretty good ice (if anyone, ever, takes a steel spoon and crushes the ice down into the container, reach across the counter and slap them right against the cheek-this is wrong and when I am in charge of this place, these kinds of people will be put where they can no longer do harm to others or themselves ) to float a great flavor or combo of flavors on. Currently, at Hansen's, I am kind of stuck in a rut with almond creme (think wedding cake ). My wife loves lemonade, the tart one, as there are two different ones. I might go have one on Saturday. They are worth a 45 minute drive anytime.

New Orleans Chefs talking about Julia Child in today's paper Lolis Eric Elie, a columnist for the Picayune, foodwriter, and one of the featured participants in this years SFA conference, has written a very nice piece on New Orleans chefs and various meetings that they had with J.C. over the years.

Kind of like fighting lions with a switch? Actually, I have managed some pretty fair biscuits out of a dutch oven, but we made need to count that as another category.

Actually Fifi, Mabelline brings up a good point. I was taught to "roll once and not for very long". The shortening (or lard or butter or all 3) should not be incorporated like in some kind of batter. Just mixed in until things are of a consistency for rolling. Much like pie dough (not the thickness, just the quick mix until it will hold together part). Mabelline in right about the cold. It makes things go better as the shortening does not incorporate quite as easy. I have my grandmothers biscuit cutter. It has been repaired with solder. Can you imagine repairing a tin cutter that probably came from the 5 and 10 anyway? She was tight as a tick. I'm ready for a Sabine River Biscuit Battle....... 1st I'll need a kitchen and then I'll need an oven. I'm working on that!

I live in an area that is predominately Catholic (somthing like 75 % or so). During lent, every single restaurant in the area (Louisiana below I-10) features fish. While the Vatican dictates may not require it anymore, many Catholics still choose to give up meat altogether for Lent and virtually all of them cease eating the stuff on Friday. Frankly, as a non Catholic, I have always loved this as we often see dishes on menus that one would not normally see. My sons are in Catholic School and I notice that they do not have meat on the menu on Fridays ever. Old habit I guess.

Thanks for the invitation. I will gladly stay. And do you have anymore of that cheese?

I have a number of Chinese cookbooks, but I seem to pick up Craig Claiborne and Virginia Lee's Chinese Cooking(which is apparently only available used). But you don't want my copy, as I have used it so much that the cover is about to come off. There are lots of very detailed instructions as to technique and many of the recipes lend themselves to making large amounts (the spring roll recipe is particularly good for this, for example).

This article by Picayune Food Editor Judy Walker appeared in the Food Section of the New Orleans Paper on Thursday. I concerns the many uses for crab boil. I thought you might find it interesting. And Marcelle Bienvenue had a piece on crabs as well. I know I have said it a million times, but I love the way Marcelle writes and her recipes are always great. Marcelle Loves Blue Crabs Alot

Jason, this is an argument that will never end. Sort of like who was the best natural hitter in the history of baseball? (Ted Williams, obviously-don't bother arguing). But you are right, a combination is the way to go when boiling large amounts. I use the pro boil in combination with the bags of whole spice. I know alot of people who swear by the big jugs of dry only. Incidentally, I add lemons, whole garlic, celery, onions, cayenne, and salt (you have to add salt when using these products. They are not salty and are designed to have it added. The spice WILL NOT come through without the addition of salt in the boil water).

Toasted Egg Bread Crunchy Jif Mayhaw Jelly Ruffles regular potato chips (only time I ever eat chips, really) Large Glass of whole milk A perfect meal.

Do it right-use Zatarains's Liquid if you have a few crabs, or Zatarain's Pro Boil if you have a hamper full. There are other brands down here, but I much prefer Zatarain's. I have boiled, literally, tons of crawfish with that stuff and hundreds and hundreds of crabs. It works and it is just about fool proof (it works for me-and I am a fool and I can prove it ). Have Fun. Brooks

Another thing that I loved about her was that she was very funny and quite self effacing. In both interviews and her cooking shows she had a lighthearted approach to the whole thing-both life and cooking. I was thinking today about the really, really funny sketch that Dan Akroyd did on Saturday night live. He had this rediculous "Julia" voice and was wearing a dress and an apron. He chopped open his hand during the skit and was going on (as Julia) about how glad he was he did that. It was hysterical. I was wondering what Julia thought about it, or if she had seen it at all and a bit of googling later-lo and behold there was the answer: That's someone that you HAVE to admire.

The Northampton Brewery has some seriously fine beer. If you want to know where we came up with Turbodog at Abita, go into Northampton and order an Old Brown Dog. That was the source brew. It's really a fine beverage.

What kind of fish? Skin on? Skin off? Whole Fish? What kind of grill are you going to be working with? Details!

Calzones with roasted peppers, onions, and lots of great cheese.

In a world full of people who wake up, go home, and have no impact on the world around them this woman was a giant. She lived a very full and rich life that greatly impacted and benefited others. If the goal here is to leave a permanent postive mark on the world before you leave it, her life was a stunning success. Rest peacefully.

Dunno about this-- neither of your brands are familiar to me up here in Pennsylvania... I'm really not sure who the locally available spring waters are, but I don't think these ones are. It was a joke. I live in Abita. I could get the stuff out of the tap.

Done. We will need to give them two weeks notice. I will set it up when it is time. Did you know that all Wyeasts are cultured using Full Sail Wort? Been that way since day one I think.

I think that it would be very interesting to all make the same recipe, exactly (particularly yeast type/types) and for all of us to use different types of honey. Keeping the water the same would be easy enough, as all of us can get some of the same stuff wherever we live. (might I reccomend Abita or Kentwood ) As far as yeast goes, I could put in an order at Wyeast and we could get Geoff to ship the stuff all at the same time-exact same strain/same pitching/same cell counts, etc. I think that it would be interesting to see how much difference the honey makes (I would assume alot).

No exterior changes and no changes in utility requirements means no building permit. We have a very well written set of zoning ordinances governing this kind of thing. I live in a very small town that is EXTREMELY protective of the way that it looks and the type of growth that we incur. Were I making any changes to the exterior I would need a whole litany of permits as I live in a Historic District and my house is on the list to be Landmarked, (through no doing of my own, I might add).

If you are in Little Rock and feel like dropping a little dough, you will not find a better piece of meat than the one that will grace your table at Doe's Eat Place. Sure Luger's has a storied past and lots of fans among our Eastern Friends (see, I'm learning, I did not use the "Y" word ), but Doe's is really great. Plus, while you are waiting on your big hunk of perfectly cooked meat, you can enjoy a few Tamales (I mean, really, how many salads can you eat?). If you are going to be in Little Rock overnight might I suggest Vino's Brewpub? They have great food and really, really good beer. If you happen to run into Henry Lee(look for the guy who is clearly suffering from arrested development-he looks 40 but is actually a happy 16 year old ) tell him I said hello and that he can give you the beer that he owes me.

I'm in (with a local partner who I will henceforth refer to as "He Who Drinks Alot"). How about a Sept. 1 Start date? That gives us time to gather info and materials and still leaves plenty of time to let the honey and yeast work their subtle magic before the holidays. Incidentally, Mead lends itself to packaging very well, as it is a more or less still product, so packing a few bottle off to our fellow brewers should be fairly easy. If we can get a few participants (this is actually a project that would be interesting for first timers, as most of the materials are easily attainable wherever you are) we can have some kind of online tasting -although that might take more organization than ANY of us are capable of. Let's see how it plays out. Any ideas? Recipes?