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by Borracho

Gridiron Grub: A Case of the Crabs

Growing up in Northeast Pennsylvania, fresh seafood wasn’t really an option for me. So for the majority of my life, I missed out on such gems as mussels, pollack, porgy and much more. Since my introduction to saltwater proteins, my absolute favorite seafood dish is the regional specialty, Maryland blue crabs. How can you go wrong with a crustacean whose scientific name actually means “beautiful savory swimmer?” Wifey grew up just a short trip from the Chesapeake and crab feasts were a regular part of life. Her parents had one for their rehearsal dinner 30 years ago, their family always got together in the summer to swim and “pick crabs” and one of the first get-togethers to let me know I was part of the family was a crab feast.

For those of you who aren’t familiar the traditional Chesapeake crab prep is a simple mixture of spicy Old Bay seasoning, rock salt and vinegar steamed together. Once the crabs are cooked, we typically cover a table with layers of newspaper and just spill everything out and begin picking. Picking crabs takes time and effort! I have gotten better but the process of breaking the crabs down and getting every luscious bit of meat out is not for everyone. That is why we always have plenty of beer and plenty of time to talk to each other. That combination of great food, drinks and 3-4 hours of quality time makes Maryland blue crabs the perfect Gridiron Grub. They may not be available everywhere but if you get a chance definitely try this while enjoying the games.

in Recipe 6 comments

by Borracho

Gridiron Grub: Say it ain’t Samosa

If you have been following this series you know it is for those of us that are just slightly snobby when it comes to food but still love the flavors and feel of tailgating. I must apologize though, because we are in week 10 of the NFL season and I have not suggested a single dish for the large population of vegetarians who read ES. To be fair, football is pretty carnivore-centric: stadiums and tailgaters produce and consume huge amounts of all sorts of grilled meats; football terms like pigskin, alligator arms, wing formation, wishbone and meathead abound, and yet I felt bad for my oversight and thought I would make amends this week to all of our vegetarian friends.

Every culture has their own way of making a pocket of bread and filling it with all sorts of tasty goodness, whether vegan, pescatarian, freegan, flexitarian or unitarian. A samosa is a stuffed pastry popular in parts of Asia and Africa. I have had delicious versions with peas, lentils, ground chicken/beef and a whole lot more, but it is a dish most people do not tackle ( I was shocked to see that even ES hadn’t touched on the subject before). So here’s my take on one of the original hot pockets:

by Borracho

Gridiron Grub: Fish Tacos and Chips

To be honest, I don’t have much of a creative process. In fact it is more like a train of thought that often goes completely off the rails. To give you an idea, let me illustrate how I came up with what I wanted to try for this week’s Gridiron Grub post:

Hmmm, I have to write another Gridiron Grub post————Crap, what am I going to write about————Can I do something about the NFL game that was in London between San Francisco and Denver?————Man do they both stink! I can see why UK would rather watch soccer————Do I know anything about British Food?————Yorkshire pudding, fish & chips, Spotted Dick————Ha! Spotted Dick————Am I 12 yrs old?————Man, this is tough, I want a taco————(15 minutes later)————Fish Tacos and Chips!!

So here you go, for your next football gathering, whether in the US or across the pond, try Fish: Halibut tacos with Pickled Cabbage-Jalapeno Slaw and Crema and Chips: Salted Lime Jicama chips.

in Fish / Recipe 3 comments

by Borracho

Gridiron Grub: Sweet P Slices

So here we are again, another week of football and food. This entire series came from the idea that the two go hand-in-hand in this country. It is so ingrained in our culture that even someone who has no interest in the sport has probably attended a Super Bowl Party or gone tailgating. I remember 2 things about the first Super Bowl party I ever attended: that girls were invited (back when they still had cooties) and that we got to stay up late and order whatever toppings we wanted on our pizza.

Just like your favorite football team or player, pizza is always up for debate. Whether it is what cities or shops make the best pizza or whether you choose to call it a pie, tray or dish, everyone always have very strong opinions. My go-to pizza is a vodka sauce-covered cut of Old Forge style pizza, but I don’t think I have met a pizza yet I didn’t enjoy. This week, after daydreaming about a fave local Indian restaurant but not getting a chance to go, I decided to mash up the taste of Indian sweet potato roti and a laundry list of ingredients I had on hand for Sweet P Slices:

Recipe after the jump.

in Recipe 4 comments

by Borracho

Top 10 Worst Halloween Food Costumes

I cannot think of a worse Halloween costume than dressing up entirely in different cuts of meat. If the prospect of spreading salmonella, e. coli and other diseases around you isn’t enough, try fending off all the small critters. Wait a second…this isn’t a costume? Someone actually wore this for real? And to top it off, a group of butchers has actually warned the public about trying to duplicate it this Halloween? OK, so maybe pass on the GaGa-influenced meat outfits. But in that spirit, here are 10 more foodie Halloween costumes we hope no one will duplicate this year.

10. Bacon Tuxedo

“We’ll force a half-smile as long as your promise not to show these to anyone, Mom.”

9. Sandwich Girl

“I said I wanted to be a princess, a ballerina or a witch but a sandwich? Seriously Mom, WTF?

8. Vanilla Bean

Who doesn’t want to pay $109 to look like a decayed banana?

in Bacon / Holiday / Lists / Sandwich 16 comments

by Borracho

Roid Rage

This country’s Jersey Shore obsession must be stopped!! Anyone paying attention the past few months knows that the Situation is getting out of control, and now comes word that soon even our fish will be JUICED! Yes, recently the FDA approved the genetic engineering of salmon for human consumption.

This announcement seems to be gathering a lot of attention here on the interwebs and among some special interest groups, but it has been mainly a blip in the realm of traditional media. Here is a quick recap:

A company has figured out a way to have their salmon produce growth hormones year-round, rather than stop in the colder months as naturally happens. Essentially, they have figured out how to “juice” our fish. (It’s funny because when we found out baseball players were doing this, Congress held a hearing, but with our food, the FDA gave it two thumbs up.) The resulting fish grow much bigger in a shorter period of time, are more aggressive and the majority of them are sterile (you can see why the Jersey Shore reference popped into my head right?)

This news is about more than just salmon.

in Fish / Rants & Raves 10 comments

by Borracho

Gridiron Grub: Bye Week

Some of you may be familiar with the concept of a bye week in sports. During the season teams get a week or two without a game scheduled to relax and recoup. Practices are minimal and they get to spend time at home. This week is the first bye week in the NFL and it coincides with one year of wedded bliss for Wifey and I.

Wifey is well aware of my sports addiction and was even okay when we scheduled our wedding so that it would not conflict with any major PSU games. Because of her patience with me in this, and many other matters, we had some quality time planned this weekend. I also thought it would be a great opportunity for me to slack off and have my own bye week by opening up Gridiron Grub to all the ES readers.

Here at ES, we do love our pizza and have talked about it many, many, many, many times, but it is a classic football party food so next week it is my turn to try a riff on it.

This week however, we want to hear from you. What are your favorite pizza combos/recipes?

Share a description, recipe or photo in the comments and we will choose our favorite to be featured in next week’s post alongside my celery root puree and white clam/bacon pizzas, and of course, to “bask in the people’s ovation and fame forever.”

in Bacon / Cheese 4 comments

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