David Ross

Thanks. I've been cooking and eating oysters for around 40 years so I figure I should know a bit about how to do both! While my home-fried oysters are quite good, they don't compare to the oysters at "Dan and Louis Oyster Bar" in downtown Portland, Oregon. They've been frying up oysters for about a 100 years!

The Easter dinner turned out quite well-with the exception of the planned Smoked Salmon Pizza. I left the lox off the shopping list and didn't realize I was missing the main ingredient, the salmon, until it came time to make the pizza dough. I made a passable alternative-with roasted red peppers, olives and bleu cheese. Just didn't have the distinct flavors of smoked salmon, capers, cucumber, sour cream and dill. Maybe another time. Dinner was a Roast Leg of Lamb that I marinated overnight in olive oil, salt, pepper, garlic, rosemary and crushed juniper berries- The Leg of Lamb resting after coming out of the oven- The Leg of Lamb was served with Roasted Potatoes and an Asparagus Custard with Morels. The sauce was a simple jus of the pan roasting juices, with veal stock, red wine and a knob of butter added- Dessert was the Lemon Bar Tart with Whipped Cream and Candied Lemon Peel-

Yesterday, I caught an episode of "My Life in Food" on Food Network. I must say I was surprised to see what I'd describe as a "serious" show about food on the Food Network. Surprised-but refreshing to know that the Producer's see value in this type of program. This episode featured two stories-one about raw honey and the second a piece about one women's quest to advocate raw milk. The information was presented in a serious tone with a focus on the people involved. "My Life in Food" isn't a cooking show and it doesn't rely on an entertainer to present the information. But it's nice to see that serious subjects about food are being presented to the large viewing audience that watches Food Network.

I'll tag onto the above post from Steven and add a real-life example from my home kitchen that applies to the use of a Chef's coat. As a home cook, I certainly don't have the knife skills of an experienced Sushi Chef. Over the past couple of years I got incredibly frustrated that I couldn't slice meat thin like the meat I found in the deli. I never considered purchasing an industrial strength meat slicer. I suppose, like wearing a Chef's coat at home, I found it to be incredibly pretentious to spend hundreds of dollars on a professional meat slicer for home use. And what would people say if they walked into my kitchen and saw the buzzer on the counter? Would I be embarassed in front of friends and family for owning what some assume is an unncessary piece of kitchen equipment for the home? Well, as I mentioned above in my post about the Wynn Chef's jacket, I had no basis in real-life experience to backup any arguments about buying/not buying a professional meat slicer for home use. So I bought one. It's an incredible addition to my kitchenand now I'm slicing homemade corned beef and making deli quality sandwiches. Nothing beats the texture of thinly sliced meats. Is it pretentious? Well, some may think so, but I couldn't care less. I'm interested in quality, safety and results. If that means I buy a Chef's coat or meat slicer, I'm willing to make the investment. Since buying the meat slicer, I've invested in a restaurant grade waffle maker. It cost hundreds, but the quality of the waffles is priceless and it has heat controls and safety features you won't find in cheap waffle makers. My chef's coat is in the mail.

Hope your oyster frying quest went well. You mentioned that your fish market gets regular deliveries of fresh oysters from Louisiana. That's great start for anyone who is frying oysters for the first time-you have to use fresh oysters. And as others have mentioned, if you can find jars of pre-shucked, fresh oysters, buy them. Pre-shucked oysters save you the time and drama of shucking them yourself, and if they are fresh, (as indicated on the date on the jar), they'll be just fine. I happen to live in the Pacific Northwest where we always have a supply of fresh-pre-shucked oysters. I prefer what we call "extra-small" or "petite" oysters. They fry up quickly, and I like the crispy outer texture and soft interior of a small nugget of fried oyster. I use a very simple method for frying oysters. I take the oysters out of the jar, and pour them, (along with the juices in the jar), into a bowl with a little cold water. The liquid serves as the liquid element you would add if you were making a batter. The next step I use is dredging the oysters in all-purpose flour that I season with cayenne, black pepper and Paul Prudhomme Cajun "Magic" seasoning blend. I put the dredged oysters on a cookie sheet and cool them in the fridge about an hour, then dredge them a second time just before frying. I use a very old electric skillet set to 375 for frying the oysters. I typically use canola oil for frying oysters because I prefer a bland oil over a stronger flavored oil like peanut oil. The oysters fry very quickly, no more than two minutes per side. Remove them from the oil and drain on paper towels for a few seconds and serve them straight away. While I use the same method every time I fry oysters, I do change the sauce I serve with them. Most of the time I only serve fresh lemon wedges with the oysters, but on occasion I'll serve them with homemade tartar sauce or "green goddess" salad dressing. Here are some photos of my fried oysters: Fried oysters served with lemon and salad: Fried oysters served on top of pasta:

I agree. After this topic was started, I went back in the closet to actually try on the Chef's coat I got from the Wynn. I had never actually tried it on-I didn't know if it fit, and for some reason I can't explain, I thought it was made of some heavy sort of cotton fabric that would be itchy and uncomfortable. But I had no firm experience to back-up my claims. Well-it fits perfectly-so thanks go to the people at the Wynn who looked me over and guessed my size precisely without measuring my girth! More importantly, the Chef's coat is 100% cotton but has a light texture and feel. It's obviously been made with the heat of a professional kitchen in mind. I tried it on and I prefer it to the aprons I typically wear-my arms would be protected, and the coat gives more protection to the neck area, not to mention the additional splatter and stain protection I wouldn't get from a t-shirt or an apron. Now the Wynn Chef's coat is certainly a valuable collectible, and a memory of a wonderful visit to their kitchens last year, so I certainly won't wear it in my kitchen when I roast the Easter dinner Leg of Lamb. It is going back in my library with my cookbook collection. But this discussion has caused me to buy a similar Chef's coat, without the autographs, to have available to wear at home. I may not wear it when I heat up some soup, but it's going to be a part of my kitchen in the future.

Right, just cut into the sheet of lemon bars with a round biscuit cutter. I forgot to mention that the gelatin I add to the recipe gives my lemon bars more of soft pudding texture.

Thanks, I'm glad to share the recipe. I developed it from a combination of old and new lemon bar recipes. I think that lemon is a light flavor that goes well after a heavy Easter dinner meat like lamb or ham and I think the flavor of lemon is an awakening to the warmer weather of "Spring." (As you can see in my recipe, I really hit you with the flavor of lemon-lemon zest, lemon oil and fresh lemon juice). The lemon bar has a shortbread style crust: butter, sugar and flour. (For the lemon bars I'm serving on Easter I'll be adding some chopped, toasted hazelnuts to the dough for the crust). I line a 9" square baking dish with foil that wraps over the edges of the baking dish. Once the lemon bars are baked, let them cool, then pull up the edges of the foil to lift the sheet of lemon bars out of the baking dish. Let the lemon bar sheet fully chill in the refrigerator, then sprinkle with some powdered sugar, then cut in rounds or small individual squares. I like to garnish the lemon bars with whipped cream because it's lighter than ice cream. I think ice cream is a bit heavy for the texture of the lemon bars. If you really want to be technical and make a "tart"-just bake the crust and filling in individual non-stick tart molds. It's a bit tougher getting them out of the molds, but you can do fancy shapes using the individual tart mold method. Hope it works for you. Shortbread Crust: 1 cup all-purpose flour 1/2 cup melted butter 1/2 cup powdered sugar Mix flour, butter and powdered sugar. Press into a 9" square baking dish. Bake in a 350 oven for about 20 minutes until the crust is set and the top is firm. Lemon Filling: 4 eggs Zest of 2 lemons 1 tsp. lemon extract or lemon oil 1/2 cup fresh lemon juice 1 envelope unflavored gelatin powder 3/4 cup granulated sugar 1/3 cup all-purpose flour 1/2 tsp. baking powder Powdered sugar for garnish Whipped Cream for garnish Add the eggs, lemon zest, lemon oil, sugar and gelatin powder to a mixing bowl. Beat the mixture until the ingredients are combined and the mixture is smoothl Add the flour and baking powder and continue to beat the mixture until the dry ingredients are thoroughly incorporated and the batter is smooth. Pour the lemon batter on top of the par-baked shortbread crust. Bake the "tart" in a 350 oven until the batter is set and firm and the edges just start to turn golden, about 20 minutes. Let the lemon bar "tart" cool, then remove the sheet from the baking dish. Let it cool fully in the refrigerator. Just before service, cut the tart in rounds, dust with powdered sugar and serve with dollops of whipped cream.

I love Easter dinner-but I hate the fact that I can't do much of a locally-sourced menu since our Spring growing season won't produce anything until at least Mid-May. We are coming out of our worst winter on record-and we've been keeping records since 1885! The asparagus and peas from Walla Walla won't be ready for Sunday's Easter table, and I won't see rhubarb or strawberries until June. Maybe July. The only locally-sourced product I'll be using are fresh chives. Believe it or not, the chives survived a ferocious winter that brought nearly 100" of snow! Tiny, thin spears of chives are thriving in my garden. Here is the menu: Salmon Lox Pizza. (My version of Wolfgang Puck's signature pizza-using the chives from the garden-and salmon from Alaska. Alaska is sort of the Pacific Northwest). Roast Leg of Lamb. I found a nice Leg of American Lamb in the market today. It's marinating right now in preserved lemon olive oil and an herb rub of rosemary, thyme, garlic, salt, black pepper and ground juniper berries. Roast Potatoes Asparagus Custard. (I'll add some morel mushrooms to the custard. I'm using dried morels that I'll reconstitute in water. Fresh morels should start showing up in more abundance in the markets once the snow in the mountains melts and the pickers can get into the forests). Lemon Bar Tart. Basically this is a lemon bar recipe that I bake in a glass dish then cut into individual servings so it "looks" like an individual tart. Photos to come.

Sometimes stories like mine tend to fade away over time. The internet, like television, is sometimes a very fickle form of media-what's popular at one moment often vanishes within an hour and the original story is lost forever. But rather than fade away, I'm hoping that in the coming weeks I'll be sharing some good news with you and we'll continue our journey into my story of cooking on local tv. I'm currently in discussions with another station in Spokane to see if they are interested in working with me to air some cooking segments. Our discussions are only in the initial stages, but I sense some interest on the part of the Producer and there is a second request for more CD's of my work. I hope that in the next couple of weeks I'll have some good news to share.

I own a couple of Chef’s coats, but they’re more for display than practical use in my kitchen. One is from a benefit cook-off I did a few years back where I was the emcee of an “Iron Chef” type of event among cooks from Eastern, Washington. It’s blue, not my favorite color for a Chef’s coat-and has embroidered logos from the event sponsors. It would be sort of out of place if I wore it at home or during a party. My other Chef’s coat was given to me by the Wynn Las Vegas and is autographed by all the Chef’s of the Wynn. It’s the standard white Chef’s coat, but given the impressive line-up of autographs, I wouldn’t want to dirty it up in the kitchen-and my culinary skills certainly don’t measure up to the likes of Paul Bartolotta and Alex Stratta. I’d feel pretty silly if I was wearing a Chef’s coat with those names on it while I was stirring a pot of chili at home. I made the decision years ago that whenever I cooked on television that I wouldn’t wear a Chef’s coat. I was constantly questioned by the Director’s as to why I didn’t wear one. I’m not a professional restaurant cook, so I didn’t want to project an image of one. Most importantly, I wanted to project a more relaxed “home-cook” type of image that I felt more closely mirrored the cooking skills of my audience. But I must admit, I have recently thought about buying a Chef’s coat to use when I’m cooking at home. I’m terribly careless when I cook in an old t-shirt and shorts-not the best protection when I’m frying Walla Walla onion rings or degalizing apples with brandy! While I don’t like feeling totally covered-up with the heavy fabric of most Chef’s coats-and I like to be cool (temperature-wise), in the kitchen-I see a Chef’s coat as a practical garment that would give me some protection. (And it just might make me feel like a better cook). I think this topic has given me cause to get to the restaurant supply store this weekend to see what kind of Chef’s coats are in stock!

Your enchiladas sound delicious. Thanks for sharing. I think next time I'll try your method for the tortillas and leave them in the oil a bit longer-I like the idea of a slightly crunchy texture yet still allowing the tortilla to be soft enough to roll-up with the filling. Thanks for the tip.

While I'm always intrigued as to what city will actually be named as the host of Top Chef, I tend to agree with Chris-I'm not sure it actually matters. While last season's show was billed as "Top Chef-New York," it actually ended up as "Top Chef-New Orleans." I don't disagree with the fact that New Orleans is a great American restaurant city-but why not leave well enough alone? If it's "Top Chef-New York," keep it there. All season.

I haven't posted here for some time, but I've been viewing all of your wonderful dinner dishes. I've been busy cooking enchiladas over here . I found these beautiful fresh Pacific oysters at the market yesterday. I thought they would go well with some pappardelle pasta. I always fry oysters the same way-dusted with Wondra flour that I season with Old Bay and cayenne and then fry them in canola oil in a very ancient electric skillet. (I learned from a Chef that Wondra flour is better than all-purpose flour for frying. Wondra is ground very fine so it makes a crispier outer coating than regular flour). The sauce for the pasta was reduced cream, roasted garlic, lemon juice, capers and grated parmesan.

Thanks for your report. I'd love to hear about the menus/dishes you had at each restaurant. Were the dining rooms at Alex and Le Cirque reasonably full of diners? Certainly the economy is hurting all the restaurants in Las Vegas and the rumors over the demise of Bar Charlie and Restaurant Charlie have been circulating for some time. But one element of the high-end Las Vegas restaurant trade that aids in their survival during these tough economic times is the hotel money that backs them up. Many of these places are "lost-leaders" that don't generate enough revenue on their own to stay open-even in good times. Yet part of the "mirage" if you will, of a hotel like The Palazzo is to have a restaurant row of expensive, stylish, restaurants like Restaurant Charlie and Bar Charlie. And yes, even with only two customers, and sagging revenues from gaming, some executives will tell you that it still makes sense for the Palazzo "brand" to keep supporting these restaurants.

I couldn't find a commitment from PBS to a firm date for when "Avec Eric" will air. They're only announcing "sometime in the Fall of 2009." One thing that is unique with PBS is that not all of the programs run on all PBS stations throughout the nation. You can always count on "Nature" and "Masterpiece Theater" running on Sunday nights. But in the case of most of the cooking shows, it's often a matter of what programs the local PBS station can afford to carry. So "Avec Eric" may not roll out on the same date nor on all the PBS stations throughout the country this Fall.

It's been 24 days since I finished up my week without shopping. If you had asked me three weeks ago if I had any lasting thoughts about going a week without shopping, I would have said it reminded me of what it must have been like for my forefathers getting through Northwest winters without the luxury of shopping for weeks on end. I don't think other than reminiscing about vague family memories, I would have come away with many more thoughts about my week of cooking without shopping. But in the three weeks since, I've found, somewhat surprisingly, that the thoughts that were provoked during my week now carry with me every day. Every day I think about not wasting food, not wasting time or money, and making do with what I have. I think about the rough times others are going through, and I'm thankful I have a freezer, refrigerator and cupboards full of food. I think about how wasteful I was in the past, and I challenge myself to remember that. I think today should be the start of another week of going without shopping, and it will be. I'll share photos of another week without shopping somewhere down the road, but I was wondering if anyone else has felt the same lasting effects after their week without shopping?

I checked the website yesterday and they have a solid roster of participating restaurants and clubs so I don't think you'd be disappointed given the price. Some of the more well-known restaurants that I saw on the list are: Aureole-Mandalay Bay Mesa Grill-Caesar's Bradley Ogden-Caesar's Emeril's-MGM Fleur de Lys-Mandalay Bay Joe's Seafood, Prime Steak and Stone Crab-Caesar's Payard Patisserie-Caesar's Guy Savoy-Caesar's Seablue-MGM I would imagine it will be similar to the Grand Tasting at Uncork'd-meaning you sample small bites at each station and have the opportunity to meet the Chefs. But I actually think the locale-amidst the pools at the Flamingo, is probably more desirable than the location of the Grand Tasting at Uncork'd last year. I certainly didn't find the stuffy, hot, over-crowded tent at Caesar's the best venue for the 2008 Uncork'd Grand Tasting.

Every television show seems to run its course. Whether it’s cooking on local television in Spokane, or “Seinfeld” on NBC, eventually every show gets cancelled, the contracts aren’t renewed, or the on-air personalities go on to other projects. Whatever words go in the press release to describe the “change in direction,” it’s a sad day indeed when any show comes to an end. But those of us who’ve had the great pleasure and opportunity to cook on local television realize our good fortunes. I was able to bring a part of my life to our KXLY viewers-and I was able to promote the local farmers and fishermen that bring their products to our tables. I was able to share my love of the elusive, wild huckleberry with my neighbors. We shared a laugh or two and a great love of food and cooking. When people step on a stage and accept an award for appearing on television or in a movie, we often groan at the obligatory speech thanking “the best crew I’ve ever worked with.” As I reflect on my run of shows on KXLY, I realize that the recognition of the crew is just as important as my own self-satisfaction or the thank you letters from our viewers. The crew-the news journalists, the team of producers, directors, engineers, sound, camera and lighting technicians-are the ones who made my crab-stuffed shrimp and radish salad come to life. Most of the crew work behind the camera in anonymity, wrapping the Saturday night news after midnight, then coming back to the studio at 5 a.m. on a Sunday morning to get ready for “Sunday Morning Northwest.” Some of the crew members of “Sunday Morning Northwest” were recent graduates of the Edward R. Murrow School of Journalism down the road at Washington State University in Pullman. And like me, some of them were simply trying to catch a break in television at a local station in a mid-market. The story of “Good Morning Spokane” wouldn’t be complete without a few more photos of the crew and the finished dishes we prepared on what would be my last appearance on KXLY’s “Sunday Morning Northwest.” This shot is from my studio “kitchen” looking toward Teresa and Rick on the news set- During a commercial break, I’m tending to the stuffed shrimp in my “kitchen.” Note the backdrop scene of Spokane behind me. (No, it’s not a live shot of the Monroe street bridge, although it appears to be when you’re watching from home). Rick couldn’t wait for the segment before tasting one of the prawns- The simple Radish Salad, the favorite of the crew- Prosciutto-Wrapped Shrimp Stuffed with Dungeness Crab- One of my favorite food photos-and the most prized memory of my run of cooking on KXLY-the crew tucking into my food. The expression of pure pleasure on the cameraman’s face says it all-

I’m a stickler for serving hot food hot, so I was going to have to move quickly to assemble my plate of enchiladas and still get everything to the table hot-a task that I would find very difficult given the nature of the steps involved. I wouldn’t be baking or broiling the enchiladas, so I had to work quick. I started by setting out all the ingredients, from left to right: The corn tortilla basket, the beans, the beef, a squeeze bottle filled with Mexican crema (sour cream), queso fresco cheese, feta cheese, green onions, cilantro, (both in ice water to stay crisp), pickled red onions and pickled cactus- The pickled red onion and cactus salad- Tortilla basket- And filled with refried and pinto beans- I strained the sauce into a saucepan over low heat- The next steps would be the most crucial of this whole enchilada endeavor-to try and create that soft tortilla texture that I knew from restaurant enchiladas. I hadn’t been successful with the tortillas in the past-I used cold tortillas and they broke when I rolled them. I thought it was due to the small size of the corn tortillas, yet I couldn’t find bigger corn tortillas. I tried large flour tortillas, but they tasted pasty. I tried steaming the corn tortillas first, but they still broke when I filled and rolled them. I turned to the internet for advice, and settled upon a method that some of you have mentioned above-first dipping the tortillas in hot oil, then dipping them in the sauce. I added an additional step of saucing the tortillas again after they were filled. I also tried a new type of corn tortilla-extra thick. I figured that the regular corn tortillas were breaking, in part, due to being too thin. I didn’t even know if there was such a thing as a thick corn tortilla-but a little more research on the internet showed that they were widely available in local markets. A thin film of canola oil in the electric skillet- I knew I didn’t want to deep-fry the tortilla, I just wanted to soften it enough to be pliable for rolling, so I only let it fry in the oil, (about 200 on the electric skillet), for about 20 seconds- Then the tortillas got a quick dip in the sauce- Filling the softened, sauced, tortillas with the beef- The plate beginning to take shape- I ladled some additional sauce over the enchiladas on the plate- Garnished with Mexican crema, cheese, green onion and cilantro- Enchiladas with beer-braised beef, pickled red onion and cactus salad, refried and pinto beans- At last, enchilada success. The tortillas were soft blankets of corn bathed in spicy, sweet sauce. Just like the restaurant enchiladas I remembered.

Keep sending inquiries to the producer's and you'll definately get back on. Did you appear on "AM Northwest" on KATU-ABC? I think that's the only show of its kind with a local format left in Portland. I did a cooking segment on "AM Northwest" in Portland about the time I started working with KXLY in Spokane. We did appetizers and cocktails for New Year's Eve. I was paired with the weatherman at the time-a young guy who I nearly choked with my cranberry martini. A few years later I was watching CNN one morning and the same guy shows up as the head weather anchor-Rob Marciano. I guess some people who start on local TV do eventually hit the big time.

The day I served the enchiladas was the day I decided what the side dishes would be-and I really used my creativity because I relied on ingredients that I already had in the kitchen. I wanted to serve some type of cold salad with a sour/acid element to cut through the richness of the beef and spicy heat of the sauce. I remembered I had this jar of pickled cactus leaves in the refrigerator- I always keep some pickled red onions in the fridge. They are incredibly easy to make, just sliced red onions steeped in a pickling brine made of water, apple cider vinegar and pickling spices. You bring the brine to the boil, add the sliced onions and take it off the heat. Once the mixture is cool, cover and refrigerate. The pickled onions take on this vivid pink color- I thought the pickled red onion and cactus would make the perfect cool, crisp, salad with a peppery, pickled tang. I wanted to serve beans for the other side dish to the enchiladas, but I didn’t want to just serve the can of refried beans I had in the cupboard. I decided I would marry two textures of beans-the refried beans, (smooth and creamy), with a can of whole pinto beans that I also had in the cupboard, (whole beans). But I didn’t want to just serve a spreading pool of beans like what I find on restaurant plates. I decided to put the corn tortillas to double-use. They would be the blanket for my enchiladas, but I would also deep-fry some of the corn tortillas in little basket shapes to hold the beans. Cutting the tortillas in a small round- Putting the tortilla in a basket for frying- The fried tortilla basket- The beans that would fill the tortilla basket- Now I had all the elements ready-the sauce, the beef filling, the salad, the beans. Next up-the delicate task of softening the tortillas, dipping in the sauce, stuffing and then plating the enchiladas.

Chef Carey-great hearing your story, although I'm sorry you suffered the same cancellation fate that I did. Don't feel alone-my appearances on KXLY were cancelled, as was the MasterChef USA series on PBS, as was my stint doing a daily cooking tip on KQNT AM 950 in Spokane. I too suffer from the perpetual cancellation bug. I don't know if my 15 minutes of fame have already passed or not-at least I'm not openly admitting to it, and I'm still sending out CD's and proposals to try and catch another wave.

My primary goal was to create a sauce, stuffing and tortilla texture that would match the flavors and textures of the enchiladas I had eaten in restaurants. Other than the sauce, I didn't rely on written recipes. I wouldn't classify my enchiladas as "classical" or "regional," but a sort of almagamation of creativity, ideas and what I thought would just taste good. After I made the enchilada sauce, the next step was to prepare a beef stuffing for my enchiladas. I slow-braised a beef chuck roast in the crock-pot for about 8 hours-then turned off the heat and let the roast sit in the braising liquid overnight. The braising liquid was a combination of water, some of the poaching liquid from re-constituting the dried chilies, beer, salt, pepper and chili powder. The braised beef- The beef shredded and ready for rolling in corn tortillas-

Great dialogue everyone. How about sharing some photos of your enchiladas?