Satin Black, Biscuit Cream: A Writer's Blog

No Better Way To Say Goodbye

2018-06-09T20:37:00.000-04:00

Just say it simply. Goodbye to one of my strongest inspirations. I’ll miss you always. RIP chef, author, and stellar human being, Anthony Bourdain.

Conflict Kitchen

2016-01-23T14:45:00.000-05:00

Using food to open dialogue to settle the world's conflicts. Interesting stuff. Find out more at http://conflictkitchen.org/

Monkey Bread Made Easy

2015-09-10T16:31:00.000-04:00

Try this. It's awesome, as will as quick to make!

Chocolate Cream Cheese Stuffed Monkey Bread
Posted by Tasty on Wednesday, September 9, 2015

Tequila Shots: The Right Way To Drink Them

2015-07-18T14:00:00.004-04:00

Since summer is still upon us, after last night's frightening experience at a gala party that shall forever remain nameless, I think it's only right and fitting that I post this.

Look...and learn people: http://www.wikihow.com/Drink-a-Tequila-Shot

Buckeyes

2015-07-02T18:46:00.000-04:00

I tried these little bad boys cold after leaving them in the fridge for about an hour -- and they were beyond scruptious!

My very special thanks to the good people at 12 Tomatoes for this awesome recipe. Try it this weekend. (Go on. You know you want to):

Chocolate Peanut Butter Buckeyes

Yield: approx. 5-6 dozen
Ingredients

4 cups powdered sugar
3 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 cup creamy peanut butter
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
3 tablespoons canola oil or vegetable shortening
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/8 teaspoon sea salt

Directions

Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.
In a large bowl or mixer, beat peanut butter and butter together. Once incorporated, stir in vanilla extract and sea salt.
Gradually add powdered sugar until totally combined. (It’s all right if mixture is dry.)
Divide dough into 4-6 equal pieces and roll each piece into a thin log. Cut logs into 1-inch pieces and roll each small piece into a ball.
Transfer peanut butter balls to baking sheets and place in the freezer until chilled. 20-30 minutes.
In a large microwaveable bowl, combine chocolate chips and canola oil and microwave at 30-second intervals, stirring in between, until melted.
Place each peanut butter ball on a spoon and lower into melted chocolate, leaving an exposed circle of peanut butter on top of each ball.
Transfer chocolate-dipped peanut butter balls back to baking sheet and refrigerate until chocolate is set.
Note: store in an air-tight container, layers separated by wax paper, for up to 3 months.

Deep Fried Ice Cream

2015-06-26T20:01:00.004-04:00

Welcome, summer! Yes, I'm back again, and this one is just in time for your summer backyard eating -- and enjoyment. Crikey! This guy is just so very Aussie. #summerrulesmyworld

Happy 2015!

2015-01-04T10:08:00.003-05:00

Happy New Year, One and All!

Oprah, Steven, and the The Hundred Foot Journey

2014-05-14T09:23:00.000-04:00

Oprah and Steven Spielberg are teaming up again years after The Color Purple, in a movie about family, dreams -- and food.

Can't wait to see this film, if for no other reason, just to get a look at Helen Mirren's magic as chef proprietress of Le Saule Pleureur, a Michelin starred, classical French restaurant.

Read more about this upcoming movie based on the novel of the same name by Richard C. Morais here

Finally...A Blog I Can Wrap My Head Around

2014-01-14T20:18:00.000-05:00

It's called Food As A Lens: Traditions, Systems, Campaigns, and Movements for, About, and Involving Food. Love it. (Love its fried chicken recipe too.)

Season's Greetings!

2013-12-25T10:59:00.001-05:00

How To Eat

2013-10-18T14:49:00.000-04:00

If you love British comedy (like I do, yes…I do, and what of it?), you'll love this vintage clip of Do Not Adjust Your Set, featuring Eric Idle before his Monty Python days.

British comedians REALLY worked messy and hard back then.

Watch:

Up On The Roof

2013-08-09T11:30:00.001-04:00

Here in NYC, it's a growing trend. From an after work gathering spot, to a cozy night out for two.

The Monarch, my favorite rooftop watering hole just recently opened in June 2013.

Read more about some of the best bars with a spectacular view of the New York skyline here

Salad's Undressing

2013-06-14T14:20:00.005-04:00

So, did Kraft's "Let's Get Zesty"ad campaign aimed at promoting its Zesty Italian Dressing and featuring a male model, barely covered by his picnic blanket go a little too far ? You be the judge.

All I know is...ahem... cough, cough...that there's gotta be a cucumber in that salad, somewhere.

Anyway, it's summer, folks. Hot dogs are on the grill. ;-)

Visit NBCNews.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Dine Like Gatsby

2013-05-12T13:10:00.000-04:00

Went to see Leonardo Di Caprio's excellent performance as Jay Gatsby in the latest film adaptation of F. Scott Fitzgerald's, THE GREAT GATSBY. I'd also like to mention that I totally bought Tobey Maguire's performance as the story's narrator Nick Carraway. (I have to admit that after seeing Sam Waterson in the role of Nick years earlier -- I was slightly skeptical.)

But when answering the literary food question of : What would be on the standard champagne sparkling menu at the grand Gatsby mansion on West Egg, Long Island in the year 1925, I really think the best answer would be found here: http://www.mercurynews.com/food-wine/ci_23133162/literary-food-what-would-great-gatsby-serve

And please go see this movie. I saw it in 3D. And minus the gratuitous 21st century rap music (which I sort of didn't get)... I loved it.

Pressure Cooker News... And Boston

2013-04-19T13:15:00.000-04:00

The Associated Press distributed a ‘Pressure Cooker Redeems Itself’ story before the Boston bombings, which some readers found "offensive." The Cape Cod Times also apologizes for a Macy's pressure cooker ad that was placed next to a bombing story.

What does this really have to do with advertising or merely using the term "pressure cooker" on a newspaper page? Dunno. A few people a bit over-sensitive during an awful turn of events this past week? Maybe.

Anyway, you be the judge here.

Steak And Jazz

2013-03-11T09:43:00.000-04:00

WBGO Jazz 88 , presents Pairings at Porter House – a three course dinner at Porter House New York followed by a great seat at Jazz at Lincoln Center for a special performance, betweeen now and June 13, 2013.

Everything from Paquito D'Rivera (who by the way was awesome!), to Ellingto, to Chick Correa, and more.

Worst Cooks Than You

2013-02-15T06:18:00.000-05:00

Didn't think such a thing existed? You just might me surprised. Check this out. (Yes, it really DOES take effort to screw food up this badly.)

Soulful Sunday Brunch

2013-01-27T18:15:00.000-05:00

Just got back a short time ago from the best Sunday bunch buffet and music fest I've attended in a long time.

Clearly, if you love good food as well as some good o'l hand clapping and soul stirring gospel music, drop in at B.B. King's Blues Club and Grill the next time you're in the Times Square area of NYC. And...you get to meet people from all around the world who come for this unforgettable hot and cold buffet and musical showcase, featuring the fantabulous Harlem Gospel Choir.

In a word: Awesome!
P.S. The Bloody Marys and Mimosas are to die for. ;-)
Watch this:

Person of the Year 2012

2012-12-21T07:39:00.000-05:00

For me, the Person of the Year would have to be Martha Payne from Argyll, Scotland.

Disliking her daily school lunch menu (as we all did) and even going as far as taking daily photos of the awful stuff and posting it to her blog, Neverseconds, she has single-handedly turned it into a campaign not only for better fare in her own school, but to feed hungry children in Malawi

So needless to say the book (pictured above) on how she did it would be a terrific gift to a special someone on this year's holiday list.

Watch this video clip about this amazing young girl:

Global Crisis In Dining Out

2012-10-19T13:36:00.000-04:00

Bartering has been around for centuries as an alternative to money, but an unending recession has increased its existence as cash-strapped firms trade services through intermediaries to cut costs and reach out to new clients.

And in Florence, Italy customers are allowed to exchange vegetables and used goods for a traditional Tuscan dinner, in a way to encourage people to dine out despite the recession.

"We decided to open a restaurant, a gathering place for those who like to go out despite the crisis," said a local restaurant owner. "Many cannot afford to go out to dinner in the evening and don't have enough money to last to the end of the month. So we decided to go back to the old barter system."

Sure, many of us who grew up far "less" than wealthy here in the good ol' U.S.A would probably say keep whatever you have, cook your own meals AT HOME and suck it up. But dining out has apparently reached such a global crisis level that people are willing to barter for the privilege…or, um, the "right," whichever way you tend to look at it.

Anyway, read more here

The Unofficial Downton Abbey Cookbook

2012-09-21T12:43:00.000-04:00

Happy Autumn!

Well, crikey and bloody hell... let me just say that like the majority of us Yanks who love the hit British PBS series Downton Abbey, yes, it's true. We'll just we have to wait until January 2013 for Season Three to catch our next dose of "Crawley" fever.

Lucky Brits. I'm told it's airing across the pond this fall, probably, right this very moment. Yeah, I know, right? Ballocks!

Anyway, it seems that while we're waiting, we can at least eat like the inhabitants of the stately manor, courtesy of The Unofficial Downton Abbey Cookbook by Emily Ansara Baines.

From Lady Mary's Crab Canapes to Mrs. Patmore's Christmas Pudding, it features over 150 recipes in twelve chapters from elegant dinner courses, to tea time snacks, to sustenance for the staff. This cookbook, written by the same author of The Unofficial Hunger Games Cookbook, is guaranteed to have you curling your stiff upper lip while dishing it up like Mrs. Patmore -- in no time.

Read more about it here

Also, if you're not already a fan of this outstanding series, take a quick peek at some of the Crawley ~~excess~~ I mean, "lifestyle" here:

Grilled Fruit Cocktails

2012-07-13T07:45:00.000-04:00

Cocktails are never far from the grill in summer. But now, bartenders are closing the gap, grilling fruit to incorporate rich, caramelized flavors into their drinks.

“It didn't take long to come to the conclusion that we should use the kitchen’s big, beautiful grill surface and caramelize some fruit,” says Marshall Altier, bar manager at New York’s Jbird. “Imagine eating a caramel candy versus a lump of sugar. Multiply that times the flavor of a ripe pineapple or peach and you start to see how caramelized fruits can change the entire flavor profile of a drink.”

For experimenting at home, Altier suggests superripe, juicy and sweet fruits like peaches, nectarines and his current favorite, pineapple, which he’s now using in an off-the menu Grilled Pineapple Crush.

Read more here and enjoy. See you back here in September.

Happy Summer!

Sugary Drink Theory With A Donut Hole

2012-06-01T14:07:00.000-04:00

New York City's Honorable Mayor Mike Bloomberg defended his simultaneous support for a super-sized soda ban and National Donut Day this past Friday, claiming that his obvious flip-flopping on the issue is: "not that ridiculous."

"C’mon!" he snapped, as NBC's Today show host Matt Lauer grilled him on the apparent ridiculousness behind celebrating a holiday for fried dough -- as he tries to stop New Yorkers from guzzling sugary drinks.

"One donut’s not going to hurt you," Bloomberg said. "In moderation, most things are OK." (Really? And of course the same would not hold true in the case of the occasional 7 Eleven Big Gulp, Mr. Mayor??)

This somewhat skewed antithesis of "fair and balanced" also has some New Yorkers fuming about the City Hall plan to bar restaurants, theaters and delis from selling sweetened beverages larger than 16 ounces. Again, for those New Yorkers who'd want these sweetened beverages as the mayor puts it : In moderation.

But the mayor said what they really should do is thank him for his anti-smoking, anti-fat, anti-sugar crusades — when they’re on their deathbed.

Which as you guessed it, begs the question: Does the honorable mayor sometimes go a bit too far (as well as flat-out contradictory), to be "thanked" for his efforts? Please, I invite you to discuss.

And that's because clearly, as a total non-lover of the mayor and many of his unequally biased policies – I am certainly "not" the one to comment.

In any case, whichever side of the debate you're on, read more here

Then, watch as Matt Lauer takes on Mayor Mike Bloomberg in this Today Show clip:

Ghalia Mahmoud: Egypt's Answer To Rachael Ray

2012-05-04T18:47:00.000-04:00

Ghalia Mahmoud has become an unlikely celebrity chef in Egypt with her 90-minute television show broadcast on the 25 January satellite channel, and created in the wake of the 2011 uprising that ousted Hosni Mubarak.

"Under the previous regime, you wouldn't see anyone like me on television," she says. "The chefs on TV were bigger than movie stars and spoke English and French. - who would appreciate me?"

Reports have it that the Mubarak regime preferred only to present a veneer of sophistication, to gloss over the hardships to which it subjected so many of its people. But reality, Cairo is said to be immense, overcrowded, and mired in poverty, and Mahmoud hails from an area that exemplifies all these things. But with her newfound TV popularity these days, this has all changed.

Like I said, picture Rachael Ray, Sandra Lee, or any other TV food show star becoming so influential, that people begin calling on them -- to run for Secretary of State.

Read more here

The Wine Opener of Your Dreams… (Or, Not)

2012-04-01T09:03:00.001-04:00

I would imagine you could open that Easter bottle of wine...probably in the time it takes to cook the entire Easter meal with one of the oddest looking contraptions I've seen in a while.

Clearly, it's one of those inventions you simply stare at, then ask the question: "Um, but why?"

Anyway, cheers, bottoms up, and watch this video clip. (Corkscrews sold separately if all else fails.)