Celery and celeriac are not the same thing, despite what our attempt at a clever title might suggest. Actually distinct varieties in the same plant genus, Apium, developed from the same wild species. Celeriac is more widely appreciated in Europe than in the U.S., as a lovely replacement for potatoes, whether steamed, roasted, or mashed. [...]
Category: Ideas
Of Fire, Water and the Ego of the Chef
Watching the third episode of the inaugural season of Chef's Table on Netflix I was in awe, in love, and then a bit uncomfortable. The series by David Gelb, who created the sublime documentary Jiro Dreams of Sushi, uses stunning cinematography and slowly unfolding stories to create a tension between personalizing the chefs and venerating them. [...]
Irish Food versus French Cuisine
Discussions of cuisine are fraught with historic, ethnic, and racial overtones which are impossible to avoid. Unavoidably, discussions of cuisine, such as this one, are a bit more academic than singing the praises of farm-churned butter, but they are important. We have touched on the larger discussion of defining a cuisine in reflecting on the [...]
Autobahn Mi – German Pork Sandwich
Inspiration can come from anywhere, including a recent trip to the Vietnamese sandwich shop near by to have a fairly lackluster Special Banh Mi. Banh Mi simply translates as "bread", but has come to mean the sandwich served on a specific type of crispy, French-inspired, demi-baguette. The classic is known as the "special" and comes [...]
This little piggie…Kyle’s Whole Roasted Pig
So Kyle says, "We should cook a pig." What are you thinking - like a pork shoulder? "No, a whole pig." How would we get one? "Don't know yet." How would we cook it? Even a small pig wouldn't fit on the gas grill. "We make a roaster." And that is how it started. This [...]
Great Lakes Cuisine 