Dave Weinstein

The weather was perfect this morning (crisp, sunny), and they still haven't built anything below us so we had a fantastic view over the valley from our deck. Breakfast was an egg, over easy, Rosemary bread toasted and spread with a fig and balsamic jam, half an apple, and a green chai tea. --Dave

Why is this? ← Hardwood charcoal is exactly that. Just the hardwood, as charcoal. Briquets are shaped and formed blocks, with binders and fillers, and impart a distinctly inferior taste. --Dave

At least on Holland-America, you can order from the dinner menu during dinner. In fact, if you want, and you have the second seating, you can order the lobster during the first seating, then change into formal clothes and join your tablemates for something less messy during the second seating. --Dave

I'm a big fan (in terms of bang for buck) of whatever it is they are calling the high end Weber charcoal these days. A Weber kettle, with a cart, and (here is the nice part) propane assist for igniting the charcoal. And, as always, use hardwood charcoal. Briquets are evil. --Dave

Depending on your mood and needs: Jasper's BBQ: BBQ (what a surprise) P&G Speakeasy Cafe: Desserts, soups, quiches, plus Saturday night full dinner specials. If you like Irish or Scottish music, come out on a Tuesday night... Zanzias (sp?): New restaurant, with a Mediterannean menu, but all I've had was the Falafel (which was quite nice) There will be a new restaurant opening up where Gardens & Sunspaces is, focusing (as I understand it) on a Northwest/Organic theme. --Dave

Are you looking for something to eat while in the area, or destination food? --Dave

Just call room service and order. In fact, order as many orders of it as you want. They'll deliver. --Dave

I'm working with smaller pieces (because I can get them easily at the local market, and that means I can experiment more) and using vacuum sealed bags for the curing, so I'm sprinkling rather than dredging. I just used a slightly larger piece (by about 1/3 lb) than I had been, and over-compensated. --Dave

The Chai spiced bacon was a mixed success. The flavorings worked well, but there was a bit too much cure and the result was overly salty (requiring a blanch before using). I'll do another test batch before posting the recipe. --Dave

This is my favorite restaurant on the East side. Make reservations for the Chef's Table, and expect to take home a lot of leftovers. The food is superb, and the the portions are heroic... --Dave

It's on day 2 of curing, so I won't know until next week. Tonight I need to freeze some of this weeks batch (the herb and truffle bacons), or they will go away too quickly... --Dave

The truffled bacon was really nice around the edges, but not so pronounced inside. Next time I do it, it will be with another very small piece of bacon, and I'll cut it into smaller blocks (and score it down the center). --Dave

I still haven't worked up the nerve/time to work on sausages yet, but I've had great luck with batches of bacon. This week I did a small truffled bacon (about 1lb of pork belly, and I included 1 TBS of white truffle oil in the cure), and a larger (around 1.75lb) herbed bacon (using fresh rosemary, oregano, and thyme from the gardon, and basil and garlic from a nearby farm). Currently curing, a chai bacon (brown sugar, lapsang souchong tea, green cardamom, black pepper, allspice, and cloves). --Dave

Pictures to follow later... Sichuan Bacon 1.25-1.75lbs Pork Belly 1.5 TBS Basic Cure 1 TBS Sichuan Peppercorns 1 TBS Lapsang Souchong Tea Instructions Apply the cure (I've taken to sprinkling .5 TBS in a glass pan, placing the meat skin side down over it, then adding the 1 TBS evenly to the meat side, but the pieces done that way are still curing) to the bacon. Coat the meat side with peppercorns and tea leaves. At this point, since I have a vacuum sealer, I put the meat into the bag, and after getting any leftover spice blend in as well, seal it, and start it curing. Cure and roast as normal. Notes I'm still not sure if the cure amount is correct for pieces this size, but since it is a savory bacon, I'm not terribly worried if it is a little salty. The first piece didn't last very long, I have two more batches in the fridge, one ready for roasting on Monday, the next ready next Thursday. --Dave