Varmint

Thanks for the report. Keep it coming! BTW, how were the conch fritters? I've yet to have a conch fritter that I thought was very good. Hopefully, this place's rendition is better.

That is similar to what I was going to suggest - but was going to add the Okonomiyaki idea to it as well... You make the batter and have tons of ingredients at hand, and let the griddling begin! Both would be perfect for summer as the sushi would be cold and the okonomiyaki hot - and could satisfy both carnivores and vegetarians alike! Of course, I'd have to learn how to do all this stuff first! Asian cooking isn't something I do frequently, and I rarely do it well. This is great; keep the suggestions coming!

One of the things I'm trying to accomplish is to teach folks some new things, plus I want it to come off as fairly extravagant. Here are my menus from the past few years to give you an idea of the food:

Over the last several summers, I've put on an event for the summer clerks in my law firm to attend. The event involves getting the clerks together with a bunch of lawyers who all cook together, making a multi-course meal. I buy the ingredients, the wine, and do much of the prep work. The clerks and other lawyers complete the dishes and then plate and serve them. I provide general oversight, but not much more. This results in a great opportunity for folks to interact at a different level than what they would in a typical dinner party. I have always done dinners focusing on Italian cuisine (Click here for a thread about these dinners), but I'd like to consider other cuisines or themes. The important thing here is that the dishes need to be prepared in a fairly short amount of time. No slow roasting here. I can make components ahead of time, but we don't have enough time to do anything that'll take a ton of time. The guests will arrive around 6, and the dinners usually end around 11. So, help me out here. Give me some ideas for cuisines or themes, preferably where wine will be an important aspect. Edit to add: Of course, I should just invite Mayhaw Man and his bride up to teach us all about Cajun cooking! The date is June 4, if you need to plan things, Brooks.

We're aware that there are reports of Blais closing its doors, which may very well be true. Until you have obtained independent verification from a primary source (i.e., Richard Blais himself), let's not start the rumor mills about this matter.

She can't cook. Even if she could, she won't admit it, as that means she's have to start cooking for herself -- and me. Now that's something I truly want to avoid. Plus, she only reads eGullet when I get around to telling her something like, "Ah, honey, it'd be all right to have 78 people over for dinner on Friday, wouldn't it?"

We actually have a signed copy of that one, and it's a pretty standard cookbook containing fairly benign "kid-friendly" food. However, because of the Emeril "phenomenon," my kids enjoy sorting through it to come up with dinner ideas. Mrs. Varmint has actually made a handful of recipes from it (if they're simple enough for her, a three year old could handle them). Thus, because this cookbook has single-handedly expanded my kids' eating habits, I give it high marks. We're just about to get his new kids' cookbook, They're's a Chef in My Family.

Damn, that's one that I should have remembered. I make a peach version of that all the time, but with berry season, it's a no brainer to do those. Thanks!!

I ended up with store-bought pound cake, blackberry coulis, and strawberries with Cointreau. Oh, and some whipped cream, of course.

Rachel was just being sensitive in light of the story discussed here:(http://forums.egullet.org/index.php?showtopic=42521). However, every book sold will help Ms. Lewis in one way or another.

Strong work, Jin. Let's now start working on grits. I had barbecued shrimp with yellow squash, sea beans, favas, garlic and scallions. Served with a salad of cucumber, grape tomato, mint, and mirin.

Here's the scenario: I often head to the grocery store after work and build a meal around the ingredients that look good. I can find things that allow me to assemble a pretty decent meal in an hour or less. Mrs. Varmint married me for that ability alone. However, I'm not as adept at coming up with ideas for a quick dessert. Yeah, strawberries are in season, and I can get a pound cake or make some individual shortcakes, but often, those ultra-good and fresh ingredients aren't available. I need quick dessert ideas. Much like dessert being an afterthought in restaurants, when I only have an hour or so to prepare, dessert becomes an afterthought at home, too. Help me improve my quick desserts. There has to be some quick tricks of the trade that y'all can share. Oh, I'm headed to the store in half an hour!

Excuse me for having a dialogue with myself, but I was just perusing the menu for Chapel Hill's Lantern restaurant (I'm eating there next week), and noticed this on the dessert menu: Dark & stormy float - rum ice cream with Blenheim’s spicy ginger ale and fresh ginger-rum syrup That's a start!

On another note, I've thought of using the hot version for cooking, but never got around to it. For example, Dr. Pepper and Coca Cola are used in a number of so-called "Southern" recipes. I can imagine you'd get an interesting flavor if you started using Blenheim hot.

Is the hot version better when mixed with bourbon or rum, or should you play it safe with the mild?

Another thought: we poach eggs. What happens if you try to deep fry an egg? Does it hold together better than poaching?

Can you deep fry a whole, live lobster? No, I'm not trying to be sick here, but if we can boil 'em, what's wrong with deep frying one? Just curious.

Of course, the most important thing is how you sequence the items to be fried. Leave the most "aromatic" items for the end. Nothing worse than a deep fried Devil Dog that tastes like fish. Or dill pickles.

Actually, you do what I did with Mrs. Varmint -- you don't tell her. When you get the pig home, you ask her which tub to use. After she calms down, you inform her, "Of course it needs to go into the tub. How the hell else do you cook a damn pig?"

We cooked this over slightly green pecan. We put it on at 9:30 PM and did our best to maintain the temperature at 225 F over the course of the night. At 5 or 6 AM we flipped the sucker. It was done at approximately 10 AM. We served at 12:30, I believe.

I started with a 200 pound pig (before butchering) that ended up around 120 pounds (without the head). It easily fit on the cooker: If you get a pig much bigger than that, it'll be a total bitch to flip.

Pressure washer. A steam cleaner would be better, but Mrs. Varmint only has a pressure washer. You can't let things soak, as they have holes in the bottom for air flow (and for drainage when cleaning!).

I've cooked 5 or 6 pigs with a rented cooker. This is the type I usually get: You can use wood or charcoal with these. Amazingly, these are harder to find than similar versions that use propane. It's a hell of a lot easier to use propane, but the product is nowhere near as tasty. If you're using wood, you'll need a separate firebox. If you're using charcoal, that's not absolutely necessary. These cookers rent around here (Raleigh, NC) for about 50 bucks for a weekend. They're a bitch to clean, of course!

I remember what my tub looked like after we removed the pig and drained it. It's almost ready for baths, 7 months later. I can only imagine what would happen to the jacuzzi jets. Ugh.

If your pig is too large, you'll have to remove the head for it to fit in the tub: Unless you have one of those big-ass garden tubs, that is!