Chris Amirault

I'd be interested to hear what people have to say about this. Rittenhouse 100 BIB is getting hard to find around here too. ETA: Just talked to the folks at Joyal's in West Warwick, and they can't get it from the distributor.

Mark Bittman wrote about the grill/broil distinction in the NY Times today (click here): The braise-then-broil method he describes was the basic strategy for a great chicken thigh dish from James Oseland's Cradle of Flavor, btw.

As an educator for 25 years, one of the big problems I see out there are "educational programs" that are big on self-justification and not much more. Most are hardly educational in any real sense, unless you consider canned lectures or one-shot field trips to be educational. (I don't.) To have beneficial effects for kids, schools, and communities, you've got to set up long-term relationships that are built on shared goals and objectives. We're trying to do that now. Our preschool is in the first year of a relationship with a student group at Brown University (SuFI, or the Sustainable Food Initiative) that operates a number of projects including an urban garden across the street from our school. They've been developing curriculum with 4 and 5 year olds with me and our teachers that's appropriate in terms of content, skills, and instruction. There's so much you can do with little kids and gardens involving core language, science, math, physical development, and organizational skills. In addition, mud, stink, water, heft, sun, weariness, and dirt are remarkable instructional vehicles for kids who don't learn so well sitting in rooms with pencils and chairs. We just started so I don't know how it's going to go -- student initiatives are notoriously hard to maintain, of course -- but I can describe it here if that would be useful. I have a lot to say about this particular subject and it's dear to my heart, but most of what I'd have to say would be particular to my school. As with many things, the devil is in the details here, so probably the best way for you to start is to sit down with the school(s), district(s), or community(ies) you wish to serve and ask them what "good educational programs" are and do. Expect to engage in a lot of things that aren't related to local, organic farming: transportation issues, training of instructors in instructional methods and design, insurance, funding, converting jaded teachers, program (not farm!) sustainability, oversight, etc. ETA things to that list at the end!

After too long going without, I whipped up a batch of this chipotle ancho rub based on Reed Hearon's version, our go-to rub for summer grilling. Tonight I broiled (no grill -- rain) some chicken that was sopped with the rub, half a lime, and a few tablespoons of the oil used to fry the chiles, and with some homemade tortillas and a few sides it made a fine dinner. We'll use this rub for pork, shrimp, chicken, flank steak, salmon, and probably a few other meats, not to mention compounding butter for grilled corn, tossing a bit into ground, uber-ripe tomatoes for a quick salsa, and sprinkling it on Frosted Mini-Wheats. OK, that last was an exaggeration. But, really, we use it all summer. What are your go-to rubs? They don't have to be Mexican, of course, just dry combinations of spices, herbs, chilis, peppers, salts, sugars, and who knows what all for grilling, barbecue, smoking, roasting... the sky's the limit.

Tried this French Pearl variation. 2 oz Plymouth gin scant 1/2 oz lime generous 1/2 oz St. Germain dash Pernod 10-12 mint leaves Add all liquids to the shaker. Gently but thoroughly muddle the leaves. Shake, strain with a fine mesh sieve, garnish with a mint spring. The St. Germain works really well in place of 1:1 simple -- and the nose and mouthfeel of the St. Germain is superior as well. However, this is one of those subtle drinks that requires a straw taste in the shaker to tweak for balance, or else one of the big flavors (lime, mint, Pernod, gin) can overpower the St. Germain.

Well, I think that some people have some pretty strong ideas about what a taco is and isn't. This blog entry by Bret Thorn concerning Jesse Bajana and Fred Estrada, two chefs in San Diego county that Thorn talked to and ate with: Having had great suadero and pastor (with pineapple) tacos last night at Chilango's in Providence, I'm happy to "settle" for trad in this cook-off. Much more soon....

For pho.

Just thought I'd bump this up with a report 18 months down the road. It's been very good so far, with most kitchen odors going out the vent with ease. The one exception has been deep fry odors, for some reason. The issue there may involve amount of time on the stove as much as anything else: a meal of fried chicken here involves three or four batches, for a total of 30-40 minutes, before the food's on the table. In contrast, most sautéing takes far less time. I dunno. Easy to clean and I love those lights....

Duck Fat, what have you had there?

Strips pull the rest of themselves into the worm to be ground, unlike chunks....

I'm also wondering about Toby's pineapple-infused Campari....

To the "SpongeBob SquarePants" theme: What cocktails are tippled deep under the sea? Crab! Malice! Cock! Tails! With bitters and bubbles as fresh as can be? Crab! Malice! Cock! Tails! Ahem. What rum is that, Erik?

I write to add that a dash of Angostura (or, if you've got 'em, the barrel-aged bitters from Fee's) is a fine addition to that Mai Tai above. Also, to ask: where are the rest of y'all?

I agree. I pumped up a weakening grapefruit bitters with pomelo zest a few weeks back, and it's fantastic.

What was the dress code? We're traveling with carry-on packs only, so if I need a jacket, I gotta wear it en route.

I don't think that I agree with the premise that "we" stopped eating and that "restaurants stop serving 'real food.'" The best meal I've ever had was at Alinea, but here in Providence we enjoy excellent food that qualifies as real every day. Even in NYC I don't think that the sort of hearty fare you are championing is gone. As for home, I certainly don't think that molecular gastronomy has transformed even fraction of the meals served there. Perhaps I'm missing your point? PS: that tarte tatin looks fantastic.

I think that you should smoke your rhubarb and use it as a savory chutney for pork. I had a wonderful suckling pig dish at Al Forno here in Providence last night that served a rhubarb relish with a confited shoulder (including skin), and it was excellent. ETA: What about making buckwheat pancakes/crepes for dessert with a pecan (bourbon) creme anglaise?

As much as I love the idea of helping things along with a decent cocktail while running PTA meetings and doing my laundry, I couldn't imagine schools or laundromats permitting hooch sales -- at least not in the US. Then again, we can't get beers for our movies, either. What are the sorts of venues that would permit tippling in the UK?

No, you were supposed to tell me how to do that.

So west coast. Me, I drank a Rusty Nail last night on the banks of the mighty Blackstone River, watching the tires float by. Guess the garnish.

Of course. However, there's something to be said for experiencing the full-on battery of service and food, plus the view, in the midst of 24/7 Thai food.

Sitting here in my living room, I'm finding myself very interested in the lilacs that my wife picked today and wondering if there's a way to infuse their nectar into a spring bitters. Thoughts?

It's a damned fine libation -- Rittenhouse, green Chartreuse, lemon, maraschino (Luxardo) -- one of those sorts of remarkable drinks that are hard to fathom in your mouth. Thank you, Phil Ward.

Because of a few projects (pimento dram, pineapple-infused rum, orgeat), I've been tearing through a lot of rum drinks. Here are a few quasi-originals that I didn't throw out: Black Daq 1 1/2 oz Cruzan blackstrap rum 1 oz Lemon Hart 80 demerara rum 1/2 oz pimento dram 1/2 oz lime (scant) dash Angostura (or Hess house if you've got it) Shake, strain into a cocktail glass, and float a bit of Lemon Hart 151 if you're feeling whiskery. Carson City Cocktail (variation on the Nevada) 1 oz Flor de Caña light rum 1/2 oz Barbancourt five star rum 3/4 oz grapefruit 3/4 oz lime scant 1/2 oz 2:1 demerara dash Angostura (or Fee's whiskey barrel aged, if you've got it) Shake, strain into a cocktail glass, and flame a thick disk of grapefruit over the top. Papaya Punch 2 oz Flor de Caña light rum 1/2 oz Lemon Hart 151 demerara rum 3/4 oz lime 3/4 oz lemon 1 oz 1:1 papaya syrup scant 1/2 oz 2:1 demerara syrup 2 dashes Angostura Shake, strain into a highball glass or tall tiki mug with fresh crushed ice, serve with a straw. Pimento Sour 2 oz Flor de Caña light rum 1/4 oz Lemon Hart 151 demerara rum 1/2 oz pimento dram 3/4 oz lime 1 tsp ginger syrup dash Angostura (or Hess house and clementine bitters, if you've got 'em) Shake, strain into a cocktail glass. I'd also be a cad not to share Beachbum Berry's receipt for the Surf Room Mai Tai 1 oz white rum 1 oz dark rum 1 oz demerara rum 1/4 oz curacao 1/4 oz simple (or omit -- ca) 1/4 oz orgeat 1/4 oz lemon 1/2 oz lime 1 oz pineapple 1 oz orange Shake, strain into a tiki mug with fresh crushed ice, and garnish if you're in the mood.

What is it pp for dinner?