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by Russell Warnick

First Class Virgins

I happened to be one of the fortunate few who survived the Labor Day weekend unscathed from flight delays and lost luggage, unlike a lot of my friends, so I thought I’d spend the time reporting back some of the culinary experiences I had at 36,000ft. When flying coast to coast, my preferred choice of airline is Virgin America. Not only do they provide an excellent flying experience, but they’re also able to give me a taste of home, thanks Sir Richard. And, since Travel + Leisure recently named VA home of the best airline food, I had to check this out in more detail.

We all know that airline food is over priced and totally sub-par, so I wasn’t prepared to spend a lot of cash on poor quality airline food. Yes, my expectations were high going into this as you can tell. With that in mind I upgraded myself so I wouldn’t feel cheated when ordering the food — it also enabled me to skip the security lines and get drunk in the air on the free champagne- what else was I to do on a 6hr flight from IAD to LAX?

The good, the bad, and the soggy, after the jump.

by Russell Warnick

Mr. & Mr. Ben-Jerry

I now pronounce you Ben and you Jerry, husband and husband.

That’s right folks, today isn’t just the unofficial end of summer (boo!), but marks the first day that the great state of Vermont performs same-sex marriages (yay!).

To celebrate this milestone event Ben & Jerry’s Ice Cream has teamed up with Freedom to Marry and is renaming one of their signature ice creams: Chubby Hubby to Hubby Hubby.

If you are in Vermont during September be sure to hit up one of the B&J shops for their fabulous peanut cookie dough ice cream and support the cause by chowing down on some Hubby love.

Vermont is one of four states that now perform same-sex marriages with California Massachusetts, Connecticut and Iowa being the other three. New Hampshire’s same-sex marriage law goes into effect Jan. 1, 2010. NH, do you think you can trump Ben & Jerry’s foodie political move? You have four months to work on it. ES is watching.

in Desserts / Personal / Politics / Trends 2 comments

by Maids

Analyzing the Culinary Offerings of Our Former Colonial Overlords (with the Aid of My Comrade in Arms, Celebrity Chef Jamie Oliver)

Jamie Oliver lets me snap his pick while thinking up his next culinary masterpiece

Brit, you might not want to read this…..

When I was gallivanting about last month, one of my main priorities (apart from saving humanity and all that) was to understand the cuisine of an obscure little country located on the island of Great Britain—a nation that once struck fear in the hearts of even the most stalwart champions of freedom: England.

This tiny little swath of land, located in the Northern Atlantic, shares land borders with better known Scotland and Wales. Apparently, the citizens of this country “England” were some of the first immigrants to our great nation. Yeah, who knew! Having sampled some of the traditional English fare, I understand why these Englishmen put off the massacre of the indigenous Americans until after they learned some culinary skills from America’s first people.

I found all of this out over a gruesomely disgusting meal of black and white pudding with famous English celebrity chef Jamie Oliver. That’s a picture of him pondering the quirks of the English palate above. More on that and some complimentary analysis of the cuisine of our former colonial overlords after the jump.

in Celebs / Food Travel / Personal / Veggie 6 comments

by Russell Warnick

Marshmallow Nachos

Growing up in England didn’t expose me to the many culinary delights offered here in the U.S.; at least that’s what I had thought. Watching television sitcoms and dramas I would hear references to foods and drinks that would always stimulate my curiosity. What was I being denied in England that people in the U.S. were eating freely?

When I finally moved here over six years ago I sought out a sweet dish what you guys call S’mores, and I have to say I was slightly disappointed. I’d had them before. My mother used to make a variation of these for me as a kid: marshmallow and chocolate chips sandwiched between two digestive biscuits and microwaved for 30 seconds. Ever since then my curiosity feigned. Apparently all the delights I thought I was missing were clearly a matter of translation.

A couple of weeks back I was sent some marshmallows in the mail by the gourmet marshmallow maker Plush Puffs to celebrate none other than National Toasted Marshmallow Day.

Yes, there is such a day and it happens to be this Sunday, August 30. I will admit I was slightly bemused by this as I don’t recall eating marshmallows since that fateful night back in 2003. Yes, it had that much of an impact on my life, but still, I was willing to give it a go and see what I could do with these sugary treats. I managed to create two dishes: my take on one from the Plush Puff recipe page and the other was inspired by something I stumbled upon last week. Check them out after the jump.

in Bacon / Desserts / Endless Bacon / Featured / Holiday / Personal / Recipe 14 comments

by Maids

Sugar Tulies from the Kennedy Kitchen

The death of Senator Edward Kennedy was terrible news to wake up to, wasn’t it ESers? And while I don’t know much about Sen. Kennedy’s personal kitchen habits, I do hope to glean some information from the Kennedy clan original matriarch’s personal chef Neil Connolly.

In the Kennedy Kitchen is Connolly’s tribute to this most influential and iconic American family. Rose Kennedy, Ted Kennedy’s mom, hosted many a large family gathering in her time with the help of her—by all accounts—superlative chef Neil Connolly. In honor of the family he served for so long, Neil Connolly’s book is filled with photos, memories and recipes.

Amazon.com Review
The famed compound at Hyannisport was the Kennedy family’s favorite place to relax, and Rose Kennedy’s kitchen was the central gathering place. Everyone—including Jackie Kennedy Onassis, JFK Jr., Caroline Kennedy, Maria Shriver, and Arnold Schwarzenegger—came wandering in the back door to visit Rose. Her chef, Neil Connolly, always made sure there was lobster salad, potato salad, and a platter of roast chicken in the fridge, and in this book, he brings these and other favorites to your home. Included in this cookbook are Kennedy family photos and anecdotes collected personally by Neil.

Here he shares an exclusive recipe from the Kennedy kitchen with us:

in Desserts / Personal / Politics / Recipe 3 comments

by gansie

Yom Huledet Same’ach

Happy birthday to our favorite lactard, Maids!

May you dine on grilled vegtables and soy cheese on this fabulous day!

in Personal / Veggie 3 comments

by gansie

Hoping My Grandmother Won’t Turn Over In Her Grave

We all know I’m crazy and at times will make two completely different meals for my boyfriend and myself; I just love cooking that much. But sometimes—even I—cave to the heat of summer and just make a sandwich. Although you know it’s just not some deli meat thrown on white bread.

When I was younger my oma used to eat this very odd sandwich for lunch. Rye bread, butter, cucumber slices, served open-faced. However I expressed this in my 8-year-old brain, I thought the combination lacked flavor and was just, well, weird. Not that I didn’t adore butter, for even at a young age I piled on the creamy spread an inch deep. But just cucumbers—who wants a cucumber sandwich when you can eat pizza bagels?!?!

I’d forgotten about that lunch staple until I recently watched someone else, an English woman, eat butter and cucumbers together. I honestly that my oma made that up. So I investigated the origin a bit.

in Cheese / Personal / Recipe / Sandwich / Veggie 4 comments

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