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 open pit BBQ sauce I was feeling a little adventurous last night and made dinner without a set recipe. I read through a few for suggestions and ingredient ratios, but nothing stood out or I didn’t have all of the ingredients on hand. So, before I tell my tale, I have to tell you a little thing about barbecue sauce in this household. Basically, I love it and Steve almost hates it. More recently, he got wild and tried McDonald’s barbecue sauce and actually liked it. I was so surprised. Maybe even shocked. But, in general, he’s a hater and I’m a liker. So when I was growing up, my mom would buy Open Pit brand barbecue sauce. I disliked it a great deal. It wasn’t my idea of barbecue sauce. And one of the main ways I ingested the stuff was with chicken mcnuggets. Yeah, I put it in the same class as KC Masterpiece and Sweet Baby Rays. I used both last night so Steve could try the Open Pit brand. For some reason, it’s been in my thoughts as a positive thing. I think it happened after learning the basics of the types of BBQ that existed in different states like Tennessee, Georgia, Kansas..etc. Well, I’ve finally put the notion out of my mind that it’s not real barbecue sauce if it doesn’t taste like KC Masterpiece or Sweet Baby Ray’s - cause it is. It’s just different. Some have spicy rubs, sweet sauces, honey, and my latest interest, the sour’ee, vinegar’ee ones. So we had a little taste off and I’ll tell you later, our deep thoughts on the subject. Ha!
Okay, so here’s what I did. I took boneless chicken breasts and had Steve pound them out. He used wax paper and a medium sized frying pan to smack the crap out of them. Actually, he didn’t go too thin. Maybe 1/2″. I threw em in the oven with s & p. Well, they cooked a lot faster than I expected and so I smeared some barbecue sauce on top to slow down the cooking. And I took it out of the oven. I was crossing my fingers for this one. As a side, I made roasted red new potatoes that had been cut into big’ish pieces with the skin on. I shook the babies up in a plastic bag with extra virgin (as per usual) olive oil, fresh roughly chopped flat-leaf parsley, salt, pepper, and then I through onion slices on top. I also used the same sheet pan and the same ‘marinade’ for the cauliflower. I haven’t worked with fresh cauliflower much. I don’t know if I will again. The only type of dish that I think I’d like it in is like a cheesy, cream based sauce. I think I’ve had it in a spicy Indian dish before and liked it. Anyway, I tore the little florets off like an insane person. The bottoms aren’t evenly cut. I stirred up the potatoes once but didn’t touch the cauliflower. And?
 sweet baby rays BBQ sauce First of all, the contest. Sweet Baby Ray’s vs. Open Pit. Steve & I ultimately decided to give it to Sweet Baby Ray’s. It’s the type of sauce I’m most familiar with and so I was accustomed to it. It has a long sweet finish that’s sorta satisfying. Actually, it may be a little too sweet. The Open Pit. I was enjoying it until Steve pointed out that there was no finish to it at all. It was true. It started with sour and then it just disappeared except for a little heat. (Black pepper may be have responsible. I don’t know.) It was also a thinner sauce and orange’ee in color. Not a bad look, but not the familiar thick, brown sauce. So, there ya have it. That’s what we thought.
 BBQ chicken, roasted red new potatoes & cauliflower The roasted red new potatoes turned out pretty good. I was so happy that I added the sliced onions. I threw that on at the last moment. I would’ve liked for more of the pieces to have caramelized and I wouldn’t have even minded some charred pieces . But the simplicity of the dish and its flavor won me over. Oh, it also would’ve been nice if the potato pieces browned more so that it formed a crust. My potatoes had the occasional piece but for the most part, it was soft. I was so glad I stuck with my decision about not using powdered garlic. Sometimes I’m on the fence with that one. Prior to this recent streak, I only used it occasionally on pizza. If the pizza is really good, I don’t use any. If it’s eh to *dry heave* then the garlic powder may make an appearance should I decide not to suffer any more than I have to. (That was dramatic, yes?) Okay and finally, the cauliflower. It needed some salt, but it was cooked well. It wasn’t mushy (but I know some people prefer it that way) but it wasn’t hard. It held its shape and was tender on the inside. My fork went through it without too much of a problem.
So, there ya have it! A meal made up by me, cooked up by me and savagely eaten by me. The dinner was easy in the sense that I used two sheet pans and the oven only. (Well, the cutting board and stuff, too.) The red new potatoes were on one side of the sheet pan while the cauilfower was on the other. And then I had a separate one for the three pounded out chicken breasts. No messy pots & pans. Yey! Alrighty guys, take care and as always, Eat Something Good!
 spaghetti & meat sauce I’ve blogged about my meat sauce twice. I’m doing it again because I wanted you guys to see the pic. The first time I made this dish, it didn’t contain nutmeg. I think freshly grated nutmeg is a key ingredient. It wouldn’t taste the same without it. I don’t go too heavy on it but I definitely taste it. It took me years to figure out what that delicious flavor was. When I finally stumbled across it one day, I was psyched, very psyched. Yes, I had finally cracked the code. The restaurant that served spaghetti & meat sauce (or bolognese sauce, I think) is the benchmark I compare all meat sauces to. The place is called Rocco’s (New City, NY). Obviously, it’s Italian. And it was some good Italian. And their portions were huge. I’d manage to finish all of my meal which usually consisted of pasta, but man, I was in serious pain afterwards and always damned myself. Their lasagne was like two large portions of one large piece. Nobody would be hungry after that. So, I’d be unpleasantly full for hours. Sometimes after a late dinner at Rocco’s, I’d wake up full the next morning. Like my body was still digesting it. But I’d go back there and eat it any day. Any.
Okay, this is where I tell you what I did. We’d run out of our home made sauce a while ago. It’s always an upsetting day when we run out but I’m getting used to it. Besides, my easy tomato sauce is pretty good. All I do is sautee garlic in olive oil, add bay leaves and a little s & p. Then I add a can of crushed tomatoes. I usually use Red Pack brand in the red can. It’s the flavor I’m used to and has some of the characteristics of a sauce made from fresh plum tomatoes. I don’t think it has high notes though and it’s richer. I think there’s a bit of sourness to it as well. I let it simmer for as long as it takes to brown some ground beef. About the ground beef. At first, I went crazy trying to break up every little piece trying to imitate Rocco’s meat sauce. Then I got lazier and let many stay. And from what I remember, I’ve always liked big hunks of meat here and there. But still, if I have the energy, I break em up as much as possible. Over the browning meat, I grate some nutmeg and add s & p. Then I pour the simmering sauce over it. (Note: If your sauce is particularly liquidy, you may want to reduce it til all the liquid evaporates. Careful not to make the sauce too thick because it will continue to cook in the pan along with the ground beef.) After the meat sauce simmers for like, I don’t know, 10-20 minutes or longer, I adjust the seasoning and may grate some more nutmeg over it. Then yes, comes the pasta. I’ve served it over ziti, penne, cavatappi, linguine, linguine fini (thinner than regular), etc…Our preferred pasta, however, is thin spaghetti. And the great part about thin spaghetti is that it cooks up in like 6-7 minutes. When you’re starving, it’s a bonus. I add plenty of salt to the water before I cook it up. Finally, pour some meat sauce over the pasta and grab a fork and maybe add some freshly grated romano or parmesan cheese. Next, get yourself a crusty loaf of Italian bread (we bought the big round kind and had them slice it) - and get to twirlin’. Take huge bites, even make noises like Mmmm, then grab a slice of bread that you’ve buttered (we used Land O’ Lakes spreadable butter) and switch off between the two over and over again til you’re pleasantly full or intensely full which is the point Steve & I take it to. *oink*
Of course Steve & I enjoyed the meal. We used to have it a lot more often. I guess that’s when we had our homemade tomato sauce. It’s hard to resist making an easy meal that doesn’t cost much either. Everybody wins with my simple spaghetti and meat sauce. We liked it so much that we both totally indulged. I had seconds and boy did we get ill. The chocolate chip cookies right before bed didn’t help either. I had to take a zantac but it was worth it. I’d do it again. Alright guys, take care and as always, Eat Something Good!
I was so excited when I found this recipe. It was wonderful to see cinnamon listed as the first ingredient. And they used a good quantity. 2 teaspoons. The first time I had a savory food involving cinnamon was in a mexican restaurant. It was called Boxcar Cantina (Greenwich, CT). I remember that it was pretty crowded when I was there with my then boyfriend who I dislike a great deal. It was decorated nicely too. It didn’t have a cheesy festive flair as many do. It was more elegant. But then again, this was ten years ago so I don’t remember. What I remember is that it offered a side dish of cinnamon flavored rice. It was sooo good and I was surprised by how well the spice complimented the meal. I never had it again and I’ve never seen it offered on another menu. So when I stumbled across the recipe by Martha Stewart, I knew I had to try it.
 cinnamon-spiced moroccan chicken To cook, I threw spices into a bag. Cinnamon, ground cumin, ground tumeric, chili powder & salt. I shook up the boneless chicken breasts one at a time and fried them over medium heat until they browned nicely. It got a little tricky because the spices “hid” the doneness of the chicken. It was browned beautifully in a not so long time. I found that I had to continue cooking after inserting a thermometer. Thank god for those. Any good chef will have one in his/her jacket pocket. It’s used a lot and quite helpful. So the next part involves apples & dates. I diced Granny Smith apples into messy, little, sorta cubes and then substituted golden raisins for dates. I don’t love dates and the recipe allowed the substitution. It actually suggested it. So you throw in some more cinnamon over the apples which are sauteed for a very short time and the whole thing was served with rice & carrots.
Okay, I didn’t love it and I’ll tell you why. It was the apples. I thought the slightly sweet combination of the chicken & apples was going to be a hit. Actually, this dish would probably be better with pork chops. You know the common combination of pork chops with apple sauce, right? This would be a little twist on that. The chicken was spiced nicely enough. It wasn’t outstanding and I wouldn’t have minded a little kick to it. Not too sharp or dry tasting though. Steve really liked the dish. He said the chicken was slighty dry though. He loved the apple part. I sorta liked the combination but I would’ve preferred a little sauce to go around the apples. I keep thinking of like an apple pie filling that sits in that sticky, syrup ee stuff. I think it would distribute quite nicely over the chicken and make it easier to eat. You don’t have to stab firm apples to enjoy it with the chicken. The sauce would just coat the whole thing. Also, I would like the apples more done, to be softer. That thought makes me think, Yum! The rice & carrots were easy to prepare and turned out just fine. This dish needed a decent amount of salt to bring out the flavors. I will be using this outside rub combination again. Steve really liked it and so did I.
Go here to see a menu from Boxcar Cantina (Greenwich, CT).
A word. There’s no cinnamon rice on the menu. It seems as though they’ve gone healthy and organic. Almost every side involves brown rice.
Here’s the Martha Stewart recipe for Cinnamon-spiced Moroccan chicken.
Alrighty kitty cats, it’s time for me to meowsy along. Get it? Ha! I don’t know if I spelled it correctly but I hope you get the point. I know it’s a really bad joke. I’m very parched right now and I must go quench my thirst. Until next time, as always, Eat Something Good!
Good pizza and beer go nicely together though I seldom have beer with my pizza. It’s usually just fresca or diet coke. Anyhow, I’ve mentioned Pizza & Brew (it’s a chain) before and I’ve been going to this particular one (Racanelli’s in Greenburgh, NY) since high school. I think my brother may have been the first one to take me. The place is comfortable. It’s mostly medium-dark colored wood and not very current or modern about its fixtures. But again, it’s a comfy place and people do some serious eating there. Once we ordered a lasagne pizza. This, by far including sicilian pizza, is the heaviest pizza I have ever had. It’s got meat sauce, ricotta and mozzarella cheeses. If you’re able to eat two slices, you’re ahead of the game. I almost died trying to eat three once. I took Steve out for one years ago when we first started and he had begun to eat meat again. To this day, he is filled with almost a horror when I mention it. This place is not for light eating though our lunch portions were approximately 2/3 of a dinner entree. And all entrees include either soup or salad (their house dressing: balsamic vinaigrette is really good. I get it every time and even lured Steve away from his usual bleu cheese.)
 linguine with red calm sauce I was in the mood for clams. That’s made obvious by my choices. I decided to start with the Manhattan clam chowder. As a refresher, Manhattan as opposed to New England is in a tomato based sauce. When I heard the waiter say clam chowder, I jumped. Then I felt kinda foolish because as an entree I ordered Linguine with red clam sauce. More clams, yeah. The soup was pretty good and I have little complaint about the linguine. Well, as Steve said, it was a little fishy tasting but it wasn’t too bad and it didn’t bother me. And you knew you were getting real clams and not canned because every now and then you’d get a little grit. As much as I dislike chewing on grit, it’s at times a comfort. You have to understand something though. This place is far from gourmet. You are not going to get top quality food. What you’ll get is good food at decent prices with very good service. Real Italian chefs criticize americanized places like these. At Pizza & Brew, they won’t give you a hard time if you want your salad with the meal or to have some grated cheese with your fish. It just doesn’t matter.
 eggplant rollatine Steve started his meal with a salad with house dressing. There’s romaine lettuce, shredded raddichio, cucumbers, tomatoes & red onion. He said it was just okay. I’ve had it many times and I’ve always enjoyed it. Then for his entree, he had eggplant rollatine. I once blogged about the story of Steve and his aversion to eggplant. I can’t believe he was a vegetarian for so many years and denied himself eggplant parmigiani. For the last half dozen times we’ve been to Pizza & Brew, eggplant rollatine is the only dish he’s ordered. It’s got ricotta, mozzarella and spinach inside. And it’s wrapped in thin slices of eggplant and topped with tomato sauce and mozzarella cheese. They don’t cook the spinach to a well done state. They let it wilt just slightly. It gives it a nice texture. Steve, of course, enjoyed his dish and was getting pretty full from the lunch portion. He’s usually in a bit of pain after eating the dinner sized portion.
Another word about service. What occurred was very typical. As soon as the host saw us entering the restaurant, he grabbed some menus and turned his body slightly towards the dining room. He wasn’t rushing us, but was eager to sit us down. Within ten seconds or so after being seated, your waiter comes out and takes your drink orders. (We both had iced tea.) Then when he returns, pretty quicky too I might add, he asks if we’re ready to order. We usually know what we want so we order right away. Then within five minutes or so, you get your salad or soup. Both at optimal temperatures. Soup was hot; Salad was chilled. Then there was about a ten minute wait for our entrees. It felt a hint long considering everything else was flying out of the kitchen. But I’m pretty sure it wasn’t a long time at all. The entrees were hot and tasty. And you definitely don’t have to wait around to get a check and pay for it. It’s a quick in and out meal that leaves us satisfied. I’ve never been unhappy leaving there cause I know exactly what I’m getting.
The best part of this meal? When I was looking up the site for Pizza & Brew, they had printable internet coupons. I got a buy one, get one entree coupon. Yes, the second meal was free. We got $10.95 taken off the bill. Our total bill was $18.90 including drinks. That was a beautiful thing. We made sure we tipped the waiter really well based on the full price of the lunch. On our way out, we ogled the desserts in the rotating case.It’s the kind that every diner uses to showcase their sweets. I had my eye on a chocolate mousse cake but decided to leave it for next time but I usually don’t get dessert from there. I’m always too full. Okay guys, take care and as always, Eat Something Good!
Check out the lunch menu at the: Pizza & Brew website!
Racanelli’s Pizza & Brew
85 Knollwood Road
White Plains, NY10607
We had quite an adventure Saturday night. Steve spent most of the day fixing both of our cars and washing his motorcycle. He was very productive and very proud of his motorcycle. Then we decided to head into the city (NYC) for a little pho (vietnamese noodle soup) and bubble tea in Chinatown. Well, we didn’t quite make it to our destination. We were cruising along just fine before we completely stalled out. Steve had to push the bike with me on the back off into the side street. Then we tried to push start it. All he needed was a big push and run. I just didn’t have it in me to do it so we decided to grab a bite to eat wherever we were. There are still areas of NYC that completely confuse the heck out of me. Like I’m familiar with the street names but that’s about it. We made our way onto a major street, Houston. From blocks away you can see the sign for Katz’s Deli. So that’s where we ended up going.
 Katz's Deli Katz’s Deli is very well known to New Yorkers. If you’re into pastrami and very good pastrami then you know about Katz’s. I’ve never been there and not gotten a pastrami on rye. Steve & I both had one with some pickles, cole slaw, french fries and our Dr. Brown’s sodas. Diet cream for me; Cel-ray for him. I still don’t know how he drinks that stuff, celery flavored soda! Let me tell you a little more about the place. Along one wall there are tables that offer waiter services. For the rest of us, it’s like going to the cafeteria. There are sandwich lines and then there’s a separate line for sides and beverages. The deli guys are nice there and usually offer you a little piece of meat before you order. And all that waiting and being crowded melts away much like the fat on this meat. When you order a sandwich, they slice the pastrami (shaped much like a brisket) right in front of you. It’s nice and hot. They put it on hearty slices of rye that holds the sandwich together nicely. Of course there are squeeze bottles of mustard on every table. I can only imagine how
 pastrami on rye many gallons of it they go through in a day.
Most of the time the pastrami is right on. Juicy and very tender. And it’s well seasoned but not overwhelming as some pastramis can be. On saturday night I was slightly disappointed because it had an inedible part and it grossed me out. But I don’t want to speak poorly of Katz’s pastrami cause it is some of the best I’ve ever had. Even after my brother and sister in law moved to California, they got pastramis mailed to them. Katz’s is cool like that. There’s a huge sign letting people know that their meats can be had even if one isn’t in the NYC area. The only thing is, it’s a rather expensive treat. It’s $24/lb for pastrami. Just one sandwich costs $14.95. Isn’t that crazy? But if you’ve never had one, it’s worth the investment & the experience.
So we got our annual fill of Katz’s pastrami and I was dreading going back to the motorcycle. I wasn’t looking forward to doing the pushing/running thing so Steve got some young kids to help us out. When he came back towards the bike I thought he had failed in his mission to seek such eager beavers out. The guys wanted to meet him around the corner because they thought Steve might’ve been a psycho. I have to admit, when he’s upset, he can look quite intimidating. Anyway, the darndest thing. The thing started up even without the kids’ help. And we were psyched and on our way once again to battling NYC traffic. We were cruising along and just as we were about to ramp onto the FDR drive, we totally wiped out. It happened in slow motion for me. We were sliding sideways on the right. I was surprised to hear Steve say that the bike fell onto its left side. He said we flew. I just saw Steve’s shoe go flying and him hitting the ground. I don’t even remember hitting the ground. I wasn’t freaked out as it was happening but later on it caught up to me. Okay, now it’s bad enough that our dinner plans had changed because we stalled out, but to have our first motorcycle accident together all in one night? It gets worse. As soon as we were able to stand up, Steve hurried me to pick up the bike so we could take off. Somebody doesn’t actually have a motorcycle license so we had to split in case the cops showed up. (This woman on her bicycle nearby was just staring in our direction. I’m pretty sure she was speechless, she saw the whole thing.) So we’re speeding away and it’s after 8pm and starting to get dark. As soon as we were on the FDR ramp, Steve realized that the headlights and tail lights weren’t working. We traveled half way home without any lights. That was freakin’ scary. Nobody could really see us well and I just hung on for dear life. I later took Steve to the emergency room. He bruised his ribs and his right arm is very sore. I have a limp but it’s just from my toe being smashed. I didn’t bother to get checked out.
Apologies for this major digression from food talk. I just wanted to give you guys an idea of what our night was like. The pastrami was good though. We once took Steve’s brother and sister in law there. They’re all the way in New Hampshire and don’t get the variety many of us do. He’s not much of an eater anyway. But after he ate half of his sandwich he exclaimed, ‘that was really good and I don’t even like pastrami!’ It was the highlight of the evening. A friend of Steve’s later mentioned that they had some great beef brisket and I was all darn, I wanted to share one pastrami and one brisket with Steve but he wanted just pastrami. Next time! And there will definitely be a next time. Alrighty, hope you guys enjoyed my tale. Take care and as always, Eat Something Good!
Katz’s Delicatessen
205 East Houston Street
New York, NY 10002
I’ve never made dirty rice before. I had something in mind but I wasn’t sure. I didn’t even know what it was exactly except for that it was possibly cajun. I just looked it up on wikipedia and it is indeed a cajun dish. That’s what I thought. So as I’m looking over the recipe, it sounded good to me. But I recognized that the recipe didn’t contain the “holy trinity”. That’d be a mix of onion, green bell pepper and celery. As I was making it, I was more and more aware of what this dish was. It wasn’t cajun dirty rice at all. I still don’t know what it was that they called “dirty rice”. It had a latin influence. A big latin influence. I knew when I tasted it that it wasn’t right immediately. For those who know what ingredients make up cajun dirty rice, tell me, does this recipe sound remotely like a dirty rice dish?
 "dirty rice" Here’s what I did. First I sauteed garlic (minced), onions (chopped) and green bell peppers (chopped). Then I added the seasonings: chili powder, chili flakes, cumin & cinnamon. Add white rice. Stir to coat and add salt and water. Bring to boil. Throw a cover on it and cook it on low. Then when the rice was cooked, I mixed in black beans, corn and fresh tomtoes (chopped.) I omitted two things. First, it was ground annatto or achiote powder. Instead, I threw in a few threads of saffron to color. And I didn’t have pinenuts so I omitted them completely. To serve, garnish with sliced red onion, fresh cilantro & lime to squeeze over the dish.
Criticism. There were just too many ingredients in this dish although it would’ve been worth it if it was good. It was a pain in the butt to make even though I had Steve chop everything. Steve didn’t think that the dirty rice was too bad. He didn’t love it and it was confirmed when he didn’t request that I keep the leftovers so he can have it the next day. Well, actually Steve didn’t think it was so bad. He just didn’t like the fresh cilantro in it. I didn’t mind the cilantro. What got me was the chili powder & cumin combination. I don’t love it except for in middle eastern foods. Then, it’s awesome. I will never make this dish again. I regret all the trouble I went through. Don’tcha hate it when you spend money and time on something and it doesn’t turn out?
I served this dish with pork chops and I screwed those up bad. Steve was really looking forward to them too since his last and only positive pork chop experience. I way overcooked them whether I grilled or pan-fried. I wish I hadn’t messed that up. I would’ve liked for at least one part of this meal to be more than just edible. Alrighty, that’s enough self-criticism, take care and as always, Eat Something Good!
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