Friday Thoughts: Bacon Beer, Rainbow Pasta, and Chocolate Pretzel Cookie Bars

Wow!  A Friday Thoughts on Friday for a change.  :-)

• The science geek in me thinks this rainbow pasta is kind of cool and the food snob in me just wants to go, "OMG...who needs that much artificial food dye!"
• Like spicy stuff?  Try out some Sriracha Salt.
• I'm not a beer drinker, but this article about strange beers caught my attention.  Bacon beer?
• Edible Cookie Cups, anyone?  Yes, please.
• It was announced last week that Ball is re-releasing, on a limited basis, blue canning jars in honor of the 100th anniversary of their jar.  Anyone who spends time in antique shops knows that vintage blue jars can go for upwards of $25 each.  These, you could actually can with and not cry so hard if they broke.
• So much bad stuff has been written about GMO foods that it's hard to think outside the box as to how such technology could be used for good.  Here's an article about a GMO rice that is designed to help people instead of helping rich companies get richer.
• Don't these chocolate pretzel bar cookies look decadent?

It Slices, It Dices, It Makes Mounds Of.....

I have a  confession to make.  I am and always have been a sucker for a good infomercial...particularly when there's a kitchen gadget involved.

Believe me, it makes absolutely no sense.  I'm not one to go out and buy-up every little gadget that comes out on the market.  In fact, I'm almost as big a stickler for the uni-tasker as Alton Brown and I try to keep my kitchen drawers clutter-free.  However, put some person on TV for an hour calling out catch phrases like, "Set it and forget it," cutting through leather with a serrated knife followed by a tomato, holding a bowling ball in the air with the suction of a vacuum, or crushing a soda can with a food storage machine, and I feel compelled to pause and watch for a bit.

So it should be no surprise that late at night, when I'm channel surfing in the comfort of easy chair and everyone else has gone to bed, I often stop on QVC or HSN to see they're hawking.  Guilty as charged.  Recently, I discovered that QVC offers an entire "cooking show" called In the Kitchen With David.  Sure, it's not a real cooking show.  But, it does have a fair amount of cooking involved and occasionally has guest presenters from some of my favorite cooking-related businesses like Julia from America's Test Kitchen (selling cookbooks).

On a whim, I DVR'd it as a season pass and will watch it when I want to decompress.

My wife thinks I'm crazy.

I probably am.

Oh well.  :-)

A Valentine's Day Story (Sort Of...)

Last night, I stopped-by my local Whole Foods to pick-up some bulk staples and see if I couldn't find something special to splurge on and make for Valentine's Day.  Pushing my cart up to the fish counter, there was a fairly young guy ahead of me dressed nicely in business attire who clearly had the same treat in mind as I had--some nice sea scallops.

Let me preface by saying that my wife absolutely loves sea scallops (those are the big ones) and I honestly don't buy them that often because they're quite pricey and I usually find you don't get nearly the quality you'd expect for the price they're charging.  However, it was a special occasion and I know WF usually has pretty good fish, if not higher prices.

Anyway, back to the story...  The guy steps up to the counter and goes, "Do you have any more scallops than what's there?"  Looking at the tray, I too notice there are a few dry-looking examples left and no price sign on them.  To the left is a tray of bay scallops (the small ones) labeled $12.99/pound.  The clerk replies politely and heads into the back room to retrieve a fresh container of scallops.

"You happen to know how much they are?" I ask the guy.

"I'm sure they're not much more than the ones next to them," he replies.

"Amateur," I think to myself with a silent chuckle.  I then reply, "I dunno...they're usually quite a bit more than the bay scallops."

So the woman returns and asks how many he wants.  He replies, "Oh...16 or 17," and she starts to fill a large plastic container with scallops.  Meanwhile, the guy thinks he's all smart and starts guessing what he thinks the price per pound will be.  I just kept quiet and heard, "Ca-ching," in my head every time she dropped another one into the container.

"Beep, beep, beep," the scale lights-up:  $24.99/pound.  Nearly DOUBLE the bay scallops.  He doesn't blink an eye, just takes his container and heads off.

To make a long story short, I ordered 8 of them and it cost around $18.  That means this guy ended-up dropping around $40 on scallops without looking at a price tag, without blinking when he saw it, and went on his merry way.

This whole encounter made me think a little about perspective and priorities.  We're at a stage in our life where we're in a fairly tight financial situation.  Don't get me wrong...it's mostly by choice.  We choose to have a home with a good amount of land and a child in daycare and we choose to spend our money on the things that we think matter.  We choose to have jobs that don't have us working 60 or 80 hours a week so we can spend more time with our family.  And we choose to try to not live beyond our means.  I could have bought $40 worth of fish, slapped it on Ye-Olde-Visa and not worried about whether I'd have the money to pay it off at the end of the month, but we don't.

Anyway, we'll enjoy our tasty scallops this evening and it will be a real treat--something we don't get to do every day and something we won't take for granted.  I don't know what this guy's circumstances are and quite frankly, I don't envy him.  I love my wife, my daughter, my life...my family.  As frustrated as I may get on the days when I sit-down to pay the bills, I wouldn't trade the life we have for the world (or a couple of mollusks).

Happy Valentine's Day, everyone.  Spend some time with those you love and do it however you see fit--not the way society says you should.  It's about the love, not the chocolates, cards, flowers, or the fancy dinner at an overpriced restaurant.

Recipe: Tuna (or Salmon) Cakes

As I've posted in the past, we made the decision to make most of our baby's food from scratch.  This worked out extremely well during the "mush" phase of solid eating.  However, now that our daughter is a toddler, she insists on feeding herself and it quite frankly tests our patience to sit there for the better part of an hour, fill the spoon, hand it to her, wait for her to get most of the food into her mouth, fool around with it, wash, rinse, repeat.  You get the picture.

One of the things I figured out early on is that you can take many of the "mush" foods and turn them into finger foods by making pancakes, loafs (like meatloaf), and meatballs or dumplings out of them.  This allows her to self-feed without a spoon but has the advantage of familiar flavors and the soft textures needed to chew with only a few teeth or even just strong gums.

Here's one recipe that our daughter loves and it's reasonably easy to whip-up with canned tuna or salmon.

Tuna or Salmon Cakes

This can be made with flaked whole tuna or salmon if you prefer that over canned.  For a softer texture, omit the 1/4 cup of breadcrumbs in the filling.

10oz (2 cans) Chunk White Tuna or Salmon
1/3 cup Mayonnaise
1/4 cup plain breadcrumbs (for filling)
1 egg, slightly beaten
1/8 teaspoon onion powder
salt & pepper

3/4 cup plain breadcrumbs (for coating)
canola or vegetable oil (for frying)

1) In a bowl, mix the flaked tuna or salmon with the mayonnaise, 1/4 cup breadcrumbs, egg, onion powder, and salt and pepper to taste.

2) Place remaining breadcrumbs in a shallow dish.  Heat 1/2 inch of oil in a frying pan.  To test if oil is hot enough, place a piece of bread in the oil.  When bread toasts to a medium-brown, oil is hot enough.

3) Using a 2-tablespoon (1/8 cup) scoop, scoop the mixture into your hand.  Form a rough ball and flatten slightly into a pancake form.  Place cake in breadcrumbs and turn gently to coat.

4) Fry each cake, turning when the first side is golden-brown.  Fry remaining side until also golden-brown.  Remove with a slotted spatula to a plate lined with paper towels to absorb the excess oil.

5) Serve immediately or allow to cool slightly and freeze in a zip-top bag with as much air as possible squeezed out.

Recipe: Turkey Meatballs/Meatloaf

As many of you know, I have a 14 month old daughter.  She's a sweet little thing...see???

She started out being a very good eater--would eat pretty much any food we put on a spoon.  Once she started with finger foods and developed a mind of her own, however, she decided she only wanted to eat what she thinks she likes and won't put anything else in her mouth (even if it's something we know she likes).

One of the few go-to protein items that she'll usually eat without complaint is meatballs and meatloaf.  I typically make it from ground turkey because it's relatively inexpensive and the flavor is milder and texture tends to be softer, though she'll eat beef also.  We were sending mini meatballs and slices of meatloaf into daycare with her and the teachers started asking me for the recipe.  Since I typically wing it, I had to actually measure things out and write-down a real recipe.  Here it is to share with all of you as well.

Turkey Meatballs/Meatloaf

Dark meat ground turkey is made from turkey thigh meat.  It tends to have a little more fat content and will result in a moister, meatier meatball.  This recipe makes fairly soft meatballs.

2 pounds Dark Meat Ground Turkey
3 pieces white bread, day-old is okay
1/2 cup milk
1 egg
2 cloves garlic, crushed or finely minced
2 teaspoons dried oregano
1 teaspoon kosher salt

1) Heat the oven to 375 degrees.

2) Warm the milk slightly in the microwave.  Tear or crumble the bread into small pieces and soak in the warm milk until soft.  Once soft, break it up further with a fork or a whisk.

3) Add the salt, oregano, garlic, and egg to the bread mixture.  Mix well with a fork or your fingers.

4) Add the meat to the bread mixture.  Using your hands, mix all the ingredients together well without working the meat too much or it will make the meatballs tough.

For Meatballs:

1) This recipe makes very soft meatballs.  If you plan to add your meatballs to an all-day cooked tomato sauce, you may wish to add 1/2 cup or more of plain breadcrumbs to the mixture to firm it up.  Some store-bought breadcrumbs have added salt, so you may wish to omit the salt in the recipe.

2) Form each meatball no more than golf-ball size.  Place meatballs sides-touching in a baking dish.  If the mixture is soft, you won't be able to make perfectly round balls.  This is okay.  Rinse your hands with water if the meat starts to stick.

3) Bake meatballs 15-20 minutes until cooked through and starting to brown on top.  Pour off any excess liquid or grease and allow to cool slightly.  Meatballs may be frozen in a large zip-top.

For Meatloaf:

1) Pack meat gently into the bottom of a standard loaf pan.  Smooth out the top.

2) Invert the loaf pan onto a sheet-pan lined with parchment or aluminum foil.  Tap slightly to dislodge the meat if necessary.  Remove the loaf pan to reveal a perfectly-formed loaf.

3) Place the meatloaf on the sheet pan into the oven and bake until cooked through and browned.  An instant read thermometer should read 160-180 degrees.  If you like, smear the top and sides of the loaf with ketchup or red sauce partway through cooking.  This will give it a sweet crust.