Being a tennis fan, I was watching Tommy Robredo and Marat Safin match yesterday and viewed some outstanding shots made by both players. I was particularly impressed how Safin seemed to have his demons under control. At least as of late.
However, about midway through the match, up jumped the devil. Safin was not playing particularly well at the moment, tossed his racket a couple of times and was given a warning. A little later the demons reappeared, broke his racket, went to the sideline to retrieve a new one and slammed the broken racket into the signage under his chair.
Thereafter, the demons seemed to disappear mainly because Safin improved his play. Then in the 5 set game 14 with the score 7-6 (no tie breakers at Roland Garros) Robredos was serving score love-30. Robredos served and the ball was called out. Safin approached the mark and over ruled the line call. Robredo served out and won the match.
Later that day I was watching CNN Headline News who showed the demonical episode twice within 2 minutes. Nothing was said of the line over rule.
Seems to me that if CNN only reports the bad stuff - that which sells - they then sully not only the reputation of whom they are reporting but also themselves making their reporting questionable.
Love to hear from you.
Tuesday, May 31, 2005
Monday, May 23, 2005
Lemon Meringue Pie
My sweetie loves things lemon. Lemon chicken, lemon and almond tart and now a new addition, Lemon Meringue Pie. Alton Brown of FoodTV recently made a lemon meringue pie.... my first attempt at making the crust and filling with his recipe were not satisfactory....a soggy crust and a soupy center.
First, let me recap the crust. Alton uses a combination of butter and lard. He also refrigerates the crust several times along the way. ( Note: This dude is a food geek and has some compelling scientific reasons for cooking food his way. We chatted at the recent House Wares Show at Chicago's McCormick Place. I mentioned that he appeared a little off the wall on his Food Channel cooking show... he replied "maybe more than a little".)
I like the combination of the butter and lard because of the flakier result in the crust. Alton's recipe calls for cooking the crust less than 25 min. at 375°F. I prefer to cook the crust for 40 to 45 min. at 400°F. Wash with egg & water and return to the oven for another 7 to 8 min.
Alton's crust recipe, except for baking time: Oven @ 400°F. Three ounces unsalted butter and one ounce chilled lard, cut into pieces. Place 1 cup of flour into food processor, add a pinch of salt and a pinch of sugar (Pinches are normally about ½ teaspoon). Add butter and pulse 5 to 6 times. Add lard and pulse another 3 to 4 times. Mixture should be somewhat granular. Remove lid and add about 3 to 4 Tbsp. ice cold water. Pulse again until mixture just comes together in the bowl.
Place on a floured surface and roll into a 10" to 11" circle. Place dough into a 9" pie plate. Puncture surface with a fork. Cover dough with parchment paper and fill with dough weights, such as beans. Bake for 35 to 40 min. Remove from oven and take the beans and paper out of the shell (save beans for next time). With an egg wash, brush the entire surface and bake for 7 to 8 min.
I adjusted his filling for the pie and used only 1/3 cup of lemon juice instead of 1/2 cup. The lesser amount of juice makes the filling a bit more solid... and it gives the pie the right amount of lemon flavor for me.
Click the title to view recipe.
First, let me recap the crust. Alton uses a combination of butter and lard. He also refrigerates the crust several times along the way. ( Note: This dude is a food geek and has some compelling scientific reasons for cooking food his way. We chatted at the recent House Wares Show at Chicago's McCormick Place. I mentioned that he appeared a little off the wall on his Food Channel cooking show... he replied "maybe more than a little".)
I like the combination of the butter and lard because of the flakier result in the crust. Alton's recipe calls for cooking the crust less than 25 min. at 375°F. I prefer to cook the crust for 40 to 45 min. at 400°F. Wash with egg & water and return to the oven for another 7 to 8 min.
Alton's crust recipe, except for baking time: Oven @ 400°F. Three ounces unsalted butter and one ounce chilled lard, cut into pieces. Place 1 cup of flour into food processor, add a pinch of salt and a pinch of sugar (Pinches are normally about ½ teaspoon). Add butter and pulse 5 to 6 times. Add lard and pulse another 3 to 4 times. Mixture should be somewhat granular. Remove lid and add about 3 to 4 Tbsp. ice cold water. Pulse again until mixture just comes together in the bowl.
Place on a floured surface and roll into a 10" to 11" circle. Place dough into a 9" pie plate. Puncture surface with a fork. Cover dough with parchment paper and fill with dough weights, such as beans. Bake for 35 to 40 min. Remove from oven and take the beans and paper out of the shell (save beans for next time). With an egg wash, brush the entire surface and bake for 7 to 8 min.
I adjusted his filling for the pie and used only 1/3 cup of lemon juice instead of 1/2 cup. The lesser amount of juice makes the filling a bit more solid... and it gives the pie the right amount of lemon flavor for me.
Click the title to view recipe.
Wednesday, May 11, 2005
Grilled Chicken
Spring temperature edged briefly above 70° this past week and there was a mighty rush for outdoors, esp. grilling outdoors. After a loooong winter, the storm windows come off and I turned on the gas and fired up the barbie.
Today's offering is about as easy as can be for the dining table: grilled chicken rubbed with olive oil and seasoned with salt and pepper.
First, butterfly the chicken by removing the backbone. Place the chicken on its breast and run a sharp knife along both sides of the back bone to remove it. An alternative would be to use kitchen scissors. Slightly split the breast bone to make the chicken lie flat. Find the joint between the leg and thigh and slice half way through. This will ensure that the dark meat will cook through.
You can remove the shoulder bones that stick up by cutting them at the joint. To make it easier to cut up after cooking, turn the chicken over, run a paring knife along each side of the wishbone. Place your thumb on the top of the bone and remove. Recently I talked my daughter in LA thru this butterfly thing...several call-backs later, she informed me that the butcher would do this for free. That's an option.
Rub your choice of oil, olive or vegetable, all over the chicken. Season well with kosher salt and freshly ground pepper. Place skin side up on medium grill for 15 minutes. If the flame is too high, you may experience flame ups so keep a bottle of water handy along with the beverage of your choice - mine is homebrew. Turn every 15 minutes until done. A 3½ to 4 pound bird will take about an 40 to 45 minutes. The skin will be browned and crisp.
Remove from the grill and cut into serving pieces.
Today's offering is about as easy as can be for the dining table: grilled chicken rubbed with olive oil and seasoned with salt and pepper.
First, butterfly the chicken by removing the backbone. Place the chicken on its breast and run a sharp knife along both sides of the back bone to remove it. An alternative would be to use kitchen scissors. Slightly split the breast bone to make the chicken lie flat. Find the joint between the leg and thigh and slice half way through. This will ensure that the dark meat will cook through.
You can remove the shoulder bones that stick up by cutting them at the joint. To make it easier to cut up after cooking, turn the chicken over, run a paring knife along each side of the wishbone. Place your thumb on the top of the bone and remove. Recently I talked my daughter in LA thru this butterfly thing...several call-backs later, she informed me that the butcher would do this for free. That's an option.
Rub your choice of oil, olive or vegetable, all over the chicken. Season well with kosher salt and freshly ground pepper. Place skin side up on medium grill for 15 minutes. If the flame is too high, you may experience flame ups so keep a bottle of water handy along with the beverage of your choice - mine is homebrew. Turn every 15 minutes until done. A 3½ to 4 pound bird will take about an 40 to 45 minutes. The skin will be browned and crisp.
Remove from the grill and cut into serving pieces.
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