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by snebbu

Burns My Bacon: Excuses

Apparently some restaurants are better with their words than with their food and service. This weekend, my girlfriend and I went to a place on the beach with a great view for a casual dinner. We got our seats on the deck, got some sub-par cocktails, and looked over the menu. We picked the “casual” section of the restaurant, so most of the food was sandwiches and fried food, which was exactly what we were looking for.

Enter the waitress: clearly already frazzled by a section of six people. Before taking our orders, she explained, “we want to let you know right now that the food comes out fresh as it is made, so she may get her meal before you get yours.” I’ve heard it before; that’s fine. We ordered fries, chicken tenders, cheesesteak pizza roll things, and soup.

After 30 minutes, I realized that they are so clever at Coconut Cove that they’ve figured out how to have an excuse for the food and service before it’s even ordered. If you set people up to expect a wait for “fresh food,” they can’t be disappointed, right?

by snebbu

Marshmallows Gone Wild! Top 10 Summertime Uses for Jumbo Marshmallows

Maybe I’m just sheltered, but I never knew about jumbo marshmallows until I saw a large palate of them in a grocery store near the shore a few weeks ago. As a proponent of campfires and burning marshmallows to a charred, crispy, oozing sweet goodness, you would imagine that I got excited.

With the summer finally here, it’s time we break out the mallows and start toasting away. But wait…there’s more you can do with a marshmallow than toast it in a fire? Well yes, and here are ten favorite, craziest ways:

10. Chocolate and Caramel Covered Marshmallow Pops

Whenever we’re making caramel apples, I make sure no caramel goes to waste. I dip marshmallows in the caramel, then set them in the freezer. Why didn’t I think of then dipping in chocolate afterwards? I’m ashamed. The peeps (no pun intended) at the turtle’s life for me made these. A layer of crushed Oreos after the caramel and before the chocolate would MAKE these.

(Photo: A Turtle’s Life for Me)

9. Toasted Coconut Marshmallows

They sell toasted coconut marshmallows in stores — but I’m pretty sure they couldn’t even compare to homemade toasted coconut-covered marshmallows. Now imagine this: they are made with jumbo marshmallows. I’m thinking you can coat the store-bought jumbo marshmallows in melted butter and the toasted coconut would stick. Or just make them from scratch. Whoever said marshmallows are boring: you lose.

(Photo: PreventionRD)

8. Oreo Marshmallows

Again, they’re homemade so the first goal would be to make these oreo marshmallows double the size. Do I hear a challenge? Damn right.

(Photo: Raspberri Cupcakes)

by snebbu

100 Ways to Use Beer in Food and Drinks #7: Ketchup!

With summer grilling season upon us, I thought the time was due to introduce a beer condiment to the mix. When thinking what the best would be for the holiday, one of my favorite condiments came to mind: ketchup. This staple condiment is found in nearly everyone’s kitchen, and is welcomed to various meals ranging from burgers and fries to scrambled eggs in the morning.

Why not complement your craft beer (still not giving up on my “anti-big-beer campaign”) and burger/hot dog with a beer infused ketchup? Beer has a tang that complements the flavors of the ketchup, while also giving it a crisp, refreshing aftertaste. Unfortunately, I didn’t have any homebrew available other than my berry wheat, so I chose Yuengling Lager.

After forming a base with tomato paste, vinegar, beer, and brown sugar, I started experimenting with other spices in the cabinet. I ended up with a consistency similar to that of Heinz and a taste that was just a little bit sweeter than what I wanted (maybe less brown sugar next time?). But the beer did give the ketchup a bit of a kick to it, and an aftertaste that left a hint of lager with you.

in Recipe 1 comments

by snebbu

Six Beers in One: He’Brew Funky Jewbelation

Some people think of funky as a good thing, others see it as a weird kind of thing, and others just think of it as downright nasty. I’d say the Shmaltz Brewing Company’s He’Brew Funky Jewbelation brew follows the same logic: you might like it, depending how you feel about funk.

Shmaltz is very witty in their productions and they don’t disappoint with the names of their brews (such as the six included in this brew). Yes, the Funky Jewbelation includes a mix of six different beers all blended into one: “Jewbelation Fifteen,” “Vintage Jewbelation,” “Bittersweet Lenny’s R.I.P.A.,” “Origin,” “Reunion Ale ’11,” and of course “Messiah.” This blend of brews was then aged in bourbon barrels and rye whiskey barrels. Finally, the brew weighs in with an ABV or 9.8%. The poster says “too funky to fail” with confidence, touting their courage to become brewing mixologists. I was pretty excited since I like unique beers and it seemed like this would be a tasty dark one, particularly since it was aged in whiskey and bourbon barrels.

in Drinks 2 comments

by snebbu

My Breakfast is Better Than Yours: The Croque-Madame

What did you have for breakfast when you woke up this weekend? Unless it was a croque-madame (which I didn’t even know about until this weekend), you lose. What you’re looking at is the female version of a croque-monsieur, which is a glorified ham and cheese sandwich with bread soaked in a tasty sauce. I’ll let you figure out why this one’s considered the female version.

Anyway, I was lucky enough for my girlfriend to have seen it made on The Chew, which inspired her to make it for breakfast. It peaked my interest right away — pretty much just because Michael Symon is on The Chew and I’d love to hang out with him and have a beer. But other than that, this concoction has everything a breakfast should be.

Think of what you’d order at the diner. If you have any wits to you, you’re going to order eggs, some delicious meat (bacon or ham), toast, and homefries. But let’s be honest, most of us just use the homefries as filler, to soak up the “dippy egg” or sunny-side up egg. This breakfast has it all and more. Not only does it have a delicious, savory meat, but it also includes melted cheese in between a tasty baked bread with crispy toast.

Further, the toast has been soaked in a cream (bechamel sauce) made of milk and nutmeg, giving the whole meal a bit of a sweet undertone. Finally, thanks to the females out there, the fried or poached egg crowns the sandwich. To eat it the right way, break the yoke first, and then cut into the rest of it. Get a little bit of everything in every bite and there’s no need for those homefries.

The Croque-Madame

in Breakfast / Cheese / Eggs / Sandwich 3 comments

by snebbu

100 Ways to Use Beer in Food and Drinks #6: Chicken Carbonara

Another one down. I’ve faced the challenge yet again and for number 6 on my list of 100 ways to use beer in food and drinks, I declare victory on successfully using beer in chicken carbonara. Be impressed.

This weekend, we embraced craft brewing by using a bottle of Flying Fish Extra Pale Ale in a chicken carbonara recipe. I’ve already heard some Italians claim that beer just doesn’t work with Italian food. As I said earlier, I declare victory. Onward.

Beer and Chicken Carbonara

in Cheese / Fowl / Recipe 0 comments

by snebbu

BEER: It’s What’s for Dinner (Numbers 3, 4, & 5)

Things are getting fast and furious in Endless Simmer’s quest to use beer in 100 different dishes. After an off-list detour for Corona cupcakes, we’re back this week and crossing three items off the agenda: beer cornbread, beer-marinated pork, and chocolate beer milkshakes!

Last week, I embarked on a beerfeast of epic proportions. My plans consisted of a four-course meal; each course cooked with beer and paired with a different beer. I got through my week mostly by dreaming up the menu: pork loin marinated in an IPA, mashed potatoes with a brown ale gravy, cornbread with a wheat beer, and milk stout milkshakes.

When the end of the week finally came around (and the drinking began) the menu got downsized a bit, quickly falling from a beerfeast to a dinner with some things made of beer, but not all the beers I wanted to make them with. The pork ended up being marinated in a brown ale, which the friend who brewed it proudly called a “piece of shit.” Mashed potatoes and gravy didn’t even happen, after I asked another drunken pal to peel potatoes and found that ending horribly wrong.

Fortunately, I made the cornbread in advance, and when I reached my peak in drunkenness later on in the night, I was still well able to whip up the milk stout shakes. And of course, while we were beginning our beveraging, we did brew an IPA. So in the end, I still had a fairly epic beer dinner, reaching a new record of three items from my beholden list.

1. The Appetizer: Wheat Berry Cornbread

in Desserts / Pig / Recipe 0 comments

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