Blog Archives

crack the spice code

August 7, 2010
By
crack the spice code

Miami is a city full of tricks and traps. Only the most cunning get out of here alive; of those, a small few escape well-fed. It’s that time again in the Magic City; the weather is beautiful- cool and dry. Some of Miami’s best restaurants have joined together in a two month-long campaign to get locals out and eating at restaurants most commonly filled by tourists. Certain restaurants are serving up amazing deals; others are just riding the gravy train. Diners beware! Here’s how it works: Each restaurant picks a three-course menu; appetizer, entrée, and dessert for $35 per person. The better restaurants will offer 4 options per course, and each option should be something that sounds delicious and exciting. The Restaurant at The Setai is a perfect example: a three-course dinner on any given night runs about $150 per person. During Miami Spice, with drinks and tip, it’s more like $80. This is still worth it! Peking duck spring rolls and the avocado and papaya squid (call it calamari if it makes you feel better) were so good and kept on getting better. The Mee Goreng (code for chicken and shrimp pad-Thai) was spicy, tangy and sweet. Ramen noodles

Read more »

bridge the gap

July 31, 2010
By
Rainbow Bridge, Lake Powell

Bridges bring places together. Food brings people together. Food is a bridge. Strangers or friends, from near or far, each and every day or for special occasions, food is a bridge that connects us. Everyone has time to eat, and why not eat with someone. Grab a quick bite with a friend or sit down for a long drawn out Thanksgiving dinner with annoying relatives you haven’t seen in ages. Sit at a table and laugh or yell or cry. Food gives us a reason to slow down, stop and spend a few minutes or hours with another person and maybe, just maybe, even score some real life human interaction. The common denominator here is food; it’s what’s on the table. Birthdays, first dates, graduation, last dates, weddings, holidays, business meetings, there is almost always a meal involved. Food can take you to a far away country, too far to get to by bridge.  It can teach you something about a far away time. Food is the bridge and we are the bridge builders. 7 Mile Bridge Chicken Soup 1 whole chicken 1 Avocado, cubed 1 chopped onion, quartered Blood (or hot sauce) 3 Key Limes Sweat (can NOT be substituted)

Read more »

the secrets in the sauce

July 24, 2010
By
recipe thieves beware

Cooks have a reputation for being superstitious to the point of paranoia. Reveal any recipe at your own risk: you could end up at a dinner party 3 months later eating the dish prepared with that same recipe. It might even taste better than you ever made it, all of the guests would be raving, and the hostess with the mostest would pass it off as her own. Can you imagine? The chutzpah! I had dinner at the home of one of my fairy godmothers not too long ago. She prepared an amuse bouche for all of us — a delightful chilled cucumber soup. I asked her about the ingredients: Me: “Is there cream in here?” Fairy Godmother: “No.” Me: “Is there yogurt?” FGM: “No.” Me: “That’s so strange — I’m amazed that it could have such a creamy taste.” FGM: “Oh…well, I did add some sour cream.” If you ask me, sour cream falls under the cream category. I understand that everyone wants to be the secretive and mysterious chef, the one who all the others want to emulate. Don’t worry — no one could ever even aspire to your culinary mastery, because no one knows what the hell

Read more »

sizzling sensational summer steak

July 17, 2010
By
grillFire

I'm sure there aren't many who know the sounds of summer quite like Thoreau. But when it comes to food, forgive me, get out the way.“I did not use tea, nor coffee, nor butter, nor milk, nor fresh meat, and so did not have to work to get them; again, as I did not work hard, I did not have to eat hard, and it cost me but a trifle for my food; but as he began with tea, and coffee, and butter, and milk, and beef, he had to work hard to pay for them, and when he had worked hard he had to eat hard again to repair the waste of his system.”

Read more »

block the bloody world cup party buster

July 10, 2010
By
My Last Block Party

The big football game is tomorrow. Block parties are springing up everywhere. All the people you know, and hopefully a good handful of new faces, will be meeting up in a back yard or empty patch of grass/pavement. When planned correctly everyone should be encouraged to bring some type of food or drink.

Read more »

lay off me i’m starving\/\/mud pie

July 3, 2010
By
hut

Summer in Miami brings rain, thunder, heat, humidity and inevitably mud. Put those elements together and you have a great venue for two things. 1) Boogie Boarding in the flooded streets, perhaps towed by a neighbor on a bike or 2), making fresh mud pies in a palm frond hut. I highly recommend trying both this summer. (Amateurs, trust me its not the same without the hut.) Mud pies are the epitome of simple summer treats and the only real necessity is a relatively pie shaped vessel. The rest is up to you, some like a little grass and leaves I think pinworms add a pleasant touch to a fresh packed pie. As far as the effects of pinworms, an itchy hole (not your pie hole) is the only one I know of and frankly, it’s worth it. Some cultures believe mud pies are actually a potent aphrodisiac. If you ask me, that’s just dirty. But give it a try. What the hell it’s 93 but feels like 102 degrees outside what do you have to lose? Breeding ground for people and pinworms alike. Classic Mud Pie 1 large pie pan Heaps of wet mud Grass and leaves for garnish

Read more »