joiei

Advice from a friend who lives in the City.

Yeah, that's kind of what I mean...now it's showing up on mainstream blogs in what seems to me a misleading way, for example: http://leisureblogs.chicagotribune.com/thestew/ [Edit: Or Omaha chef gets James Beard nod. Isn't that overstating the case just a little?] Whatever. Good luck to you, Chef, in any case, hope you make the next 2 cuts! ← I have eaten at the Flatiron and it was very good, but it wasn't a Bluestem. In that story the manager was freaking out about Valentines reservations the day before????

I would definitely be up for checking out the Cochon Butcher breakfast on Sunday.

I am surprised to hear you say Cochon is closed. They are still listed on Tom Fitzmorris' site. Other places to try would be KPaul or Mulate's (IMO) ← I think he meant they are closed on Sundays. K-Paul's is also closed on Sundays. Sunday night can be a tough night to dine out in New Orleans.

Zeemanb, since you seem to be up in that neck of the woods often, what's the story on that Agave that opened up around the corner from the Cupini's? I see that the Backyard BBQ place got an upgrade and went to a larger, more visible spot. ← I have not been to Agave, was hoping you'd take the bullet and check it out, lol. Backyard BBQ has definitely taken a turn for the better as far as location, and I believe they are hosting an event at Briarcliff this weekend to feature the creators of the "Bacon Explosion" that is all the rage online. I may have to saunter over there and check it out. Good things happening in NKC! ← I fully expect to see this bacon explosion thing show up at several of the bbq competitions that I will judge this season. My guess is the first one will be either Enid or Claremore.

THis information comes from the CajunGrocer.com

You can request anything you want. Whether or not it will materialize is another thing. moosnsqrl - what's wrong with joiei's company car? ← Nothing - 10 gallons per mile is perfectly acceptable fuel consumption ← make that 13.

Does this mean I can request this dessert the next time I am up to KC? People here still think I am weird when my eyes glaze over when talking about the chamapagne float, that was sooooooo long ago. Living in Okie land can be a challenge. But I love it. Just don't tell Moosnsqrl. She gives me a hard time about my company car.

I second this dessert. I loved it in its complete simplicity of flavors that worked so well.

Cafe du Monde is one of those things that is fun to do in New Orleans, like every one said, to avoid the crowds, go later in the day. Or Early. Another only in New Orleans fun thing to do that is free is walk aboard the Canal Street ferry and take a ride across the river. You can get off or stay on if you want. No charge to pedestrians. The view of the city from the river is great. You can also hike around Algiers for a bit if you want to. Or take a bike with you. Even when I lived in the city every once in a while a trip to Cafe Du Monde was worth the experience. Cafe Du Monde is one thing the locals do do, most locals I know do not go hang out on Bourbon Street with all the drunk frat boys.

So, is everyone else available January 5? Aaron, chilihead, Dividend, Mamagotcha? jgm, joiei, are you coming up? ← Thinking about it, seriously. Just get all the snow and ice melted before then.

So what did you end up deciding on? What is that lucky lad getting from his generous auntie? Are you going to include a copy of Chad's book for him to learn about use and care of good cutlery?

sounds like a good enough reason to justify a trip up after the holidays.

Maybe this Link to John Folse will help answer some of your alls questions about roux. John Folse is a well regarded authority on all Food related things from South Louisiana. His knowledge of food history is amazing. Back to the topic, In his discussion, Chef Folse talks about oil-less roux and makes this recommendation Here Chef Folse talks about the roux's of South Louisiana So apparently even Chef Folse is not averse to having a little store bought helper on hand for occasions. I noticed he also uses a cast iron pot or skillet when making his darker rouxs. As to keeping roux here is what he recommends

I use white sugar and heavy cream and I like the chopped pecans lightly toasted. And the pot I use is an older restaurant style aluminum pot. I scoop with an ice cream scoop onto parchment, I don't have the marble slab Marcel talks about, would be nice though.

In today's Times-Picayune eG member Marcel Bienvenu has an article about one of my favorite holiday treats from south Louisiana. Pralines, my preference is for the traditional creamy praline. When I worked at the Windsor Court Hotel, we were making pralines for the housekeeping staff to use as turn down treats. We made several hundred a day. It reached a point I didn't need a candy thermometer, I could tell just by looking at the size of the bubbles when it was ready to scoop onto parchment. Now, besides making gumbo this weekend, I will be making pralines.

I would recommend throwing in a copy of Chad's new book, the one that made Slate's top 10 books of 2008. For Christmas I sent one to my nephew who just treated himself to his first set of good knives, he bought Wusthof. I am thinking of treating myself to that nakiri also. I have never used one and before spending big bucks, it would be worthwhile to see how much I would use it.

Why would I go to Hebert's Speciality Meats here and when I am picking up the Camellia red beans, the Poche's Tasso and Andouille pick up a back up jar of roux. As has been stated above, for emergencies. Like it is 5 pm and my employer decides she wants gumbo for dinner. Or I have just found out that a crowd is coming to dinner and I only have 2 hours to put the whole thing together. Or if I am just being lazy on my day off and want a little etouffee for 2. Oh how I wish I could get the real unpastrized crab meat here. I do have to settle for the cans from the fish market. The little cans from the grocery store over where the canned tuna and salmon are is really bad. Now I want some speckled trout with a little crabmeat for dinner. oh well. Next trip to New Orleans.

Here ya go - from the San Francisco Chronicle -

There's some chatter about this question on this topic:click. Foodie? Maybe -- the Obamas love a nice meal out. But I read somewhere (where, dammit?) that the Prez-elect ate the same dinner every night on the campaign trail: salmon, rice and broccoli. That's discipline. ← At least it wasn't a burger and cheese fries.

Food is the common denominator in all these movies, not necessarily the star. I agree with Jaymes, great memories are made around food, and sometimes with food being the star. When my family gets together, it is most often over the dining table.

Where do the Obama's like to dine around Chicago? This foodie blog, Sky Full of Bacon has started compiling a list of their hangouts.

I can recommend to make a quick trip down to Tulsa to talk to Steven Howard of Kokoa Chocolatier, he now has three shops here or go talk to Christopher Elbow in KC. They have different types of shops but they are still open.

Shirley lives in Georgia so i guess they get first crack at a book signing with her. Shirley's background is as a food scientist like Mr McGee. In the course of writing the book she has had some serious health problem to deal with. To meet her in person, Shirley is a very funny person filled with so much knowledge of food and the science of food. I backed her up for a cooking school class one time and fell in love with her then.