Asparagus Sous Vide

Recently watched a video of Heston Blumenthol's technique of combining asparagus with mushroom and truffle. Cooked in olive oil and butter, he prepares it in cast iron. I had some great looking produce, and influenced by Cooking Issues, I decided to try it sous vide. In  What Sous Vide Can Achieve, At a Glance Thomas Keller claims that "the color of green vegetables—broccoli, asparagus, peas, etc.—is harmed" by this method, but for me it turn out great. Without access to fresh truffles, I used white truffle salt and cooked everything for six minutes.

 The texture was perfect, obviously not watery and the flavor? Intense!

CERNstock

"The cannabis experience has greatly improved my appreciation for art, a subject which I had never much appreciated before. [...]  The enjoyment of food is amplified; tastes and aromas emerge that for some reason we ordinarily seem to be too busy to notice. I am able to give my full attention to the sensation. A potato will have a texture, a body, and taste like that of other potatoes, but much more so. [...] Improvement [in] my appreciation of music has [also] occurred with cannabis. For the first time I have been able to hear the separate parts of a three-part harmony and the richness of the counterpoint. I have since discovered that professional musicians can quite easily keep many separate parts going simultaneously in their heads, but this was the first time for me." - Carl Sagan "Marihuana Reconsidered"

Jerk Chicken

New Camera - Unaltered. Which is better?

Some pix I took UT ® °_° ®

œœœo

Harrisburg Family House

Pretty good Greek-style restaurant with your typically huge menu. Everything that I have had has been decent. From breakfast to pork chops, it's a good local place where everyone can get what they want. Most items are made in house so all of their "regular" food has some flavor. It  doesn't seem to taste overly processed like many of these places do.

The chicken parm has to be the best thing that I have had there. It is better than Olive Garden and is only $9. The Marinara sauce is a little paste heavy. Asked the waitress what's the best thing on the menu, and even inquired about a review on the wall, but unfortunately she did the thing I detest; just read the menu to me.

We also tried, this time, the chicken pot pie. It had good flavor, even the gelatinous goo holding it together tasted like chicken. Unfortunately, they covered the pastry (the pie part, no crust) with sauce, so it became soggy.

Everyone in there is always really nice and the service is good. My sister and I eat together all of the time and people assume that we are a couple. The lady at the register had us pegged as siblings in no time, she's the first!

Yelp

Amelie's French Bakery

Best baguette in town. Oh how I love thee let me count the ways;

24hrs, frozen take-home bread, the twice baked croissants, plenty of room(s), wi-fi, coffee, sandwiches, coolness obtained by being there, etc. 5*s for it being in Charlotte.

3.5*s overall because the butter croissants are a little weak and the prices a little high, but it's worth it for that baguette...

Yelp

TRANSGLUTAMINASE

From Will Powder - ACTIVA® RM is a transglutaminase enzyme preparation that may be used for bonding a diverse range of food materials such as red meat, poultry and seafood pieces. It can be added as a pre-hydrated slurry or as a dry powder. ACTIVA® RM is versatile in application and its use can be tailored to fit most processes.
Ways to Apply Product:
1) Sprinkle Method: To join specific pieces, ACTIVA® RM can be sprinkled on product surfaces. The surfaces are then joined and held in place through vacuum packaging or molding. Products must be joined as soon as possible (20-30 minutes, depending on specific conditions) after ACTIVA® application to allow optimal bonding action. Typical usage level: 0.75-1.0% of formula weight.

2) Mixer addition: ACTIVA® RM may be used in chunked and formed applications. Typically, mixing is used to incorporate a marinade into meat trimmings or coarse ground products. After the marinade is adequately absorbed, ACTIVA® RM may be added as a dry powder during mixing. ACTIVA® RM should be mixed with a product until dispersed. Once ACTIVA® RM is added, the product should be formed, stuffed or molded into the desired shape as soon as possible (within 20- 30 minutes depending in specific conditions). Typical usage level: 0.75-1.0% of formula weight.

3) Slurry Method: ACTIVA® RM can be pre-hydrated at about 4 to 4.5 times its weight in water. The slurry is then added to meat chunks, blended and allowed to react in the desired shape under refrigerated conditions. Once mixed with water, the slurry must immediately be applied to the product and formed as soon as possible (within 20-30 minutes depending on specific conditions). Typical usage level: 1.0% of formula weight.

Reaction time and conditions:
After forming, products are generally left under refrigeration for 4-24 hours to allow maximized bonding to take place. After the reaction is complete, the products can be frozen, tempered and portioned. In some cases products can be portioned fresh and then packaged fresh and/or frozen. - From Will Powder

Unusual Cooking Concepts

Directions in food (Meat Pix)