July 4th Barbeque Recipes

Posted on July 5, 2011 by fast eddie

Another great July 4th Barbeque. Here are some of the highlights for your next summer party.

Texas Beef Brisket

Grilled Jerk Chicken
For jerk marinade:
3 scallions, chopped
4 large garlic cloves, chopped
1 small onion, chopped
4 to 5 fresh Scotch bonnet or habanero chile, stemmed and seeded
1/4 cup fresh lime juice
2 tablespoons soy sauce
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 1/2 tablespoons salt
1 tablespoon packed brown sugar
1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves
2 teaspoons ground allspice
2 teaspoons black pepper
3/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

For chicken:
4 chicken breast halves with skin and bones (3 pounds), halved crosswise
2 1/2 to 3 pounds chicken thighs and drumsticks

Make marinade:
Blend all marinade ingredients in a blender until smooth.

Marinate and grill chicken:
Divide chicken pieces and marinade between 2 sealable plastic bags. Seal bags, pressing out excess air, then turn bags over several times to distribute marinade. Put bags of chicken in a shallow pan and marinate, chilled, turning once or twice, 1 day.

Let chicken stand at room temperature 1 hour before cooking.

To cook chicken using a charcoal grill:
Open vents on bottom of grill and on lid. Light a large chimney of charcoal briquettes (about 100) and pour them evenly over 1 side of bottom rack (you will have a double or triple layer of charcoal).

When charcoal turns grayish white and you can hold your hand 5 inches above rack for 3 to 4 seconds, sear chicken in batches on lightly oiled rack over coals until well browned on all sides, about 3 minutes per batch. Move chicken as seared to side of grill with no coals underneath, then cook, covered with lid, until cooked through, 25 to 30 minutes more.

To cook chicken using a gas grill:
Preheat burners on high, then adjust heat to moderate. Cook chicken until well browned on all sides, 15 to 20 minutes. Adjust heat to low and cook chicken, covered with lid, until cooked through, about 25 minutes more.

Cooks’ note:
· If you can’t grill, you can roast chicken in 2 large shallow (1-inch-deep) baking pans in upper and lower thirds of a 400°F oven, switching position of pans halfway through roasting, 40 to 45 minutes total.

Gourmet
May 2002

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The King of King’s Road (3)

Posted on July 4, 2011 by fast eddie

(continued from The King of King’s Road (2))

One morning, like many others, the homeless man sat on the sidewalk near the fire house with his coffee can set in front of him next to a cardboard sign that said ” Please help me. I’m homeless. I don’t drink or smoke. I’m hungry.” He watched people pass without looking at him. Nearby, a young boy kicked a plastic ball as his mother walked and talked on her cell phone. She appeared to be having an animated conversation and paid no attention to the boy and his ball. The boy dribbled the ball and tried several times without success to flick it in the air and bounce it off his knee. After getting frustrated he kicked the ball hard as if taking a shot at a goal. The ball came straight to the homeless man who caught it and rolled it back to the boy.

The boy continued to kick and dribble and flick the ball while his mother continued to talk on the phone. The homeless man watched the boy who smiled and responded to his audience by attempting to kick harder and higher until he finally kicked the ball into the traffic travelling on King’s Road. The boy stared at the ball for a bit and then started to move toward it. His mother did not see what was happening. The homeless man did. He quickly stood up and moved toward the boy, grabbing him by the collar before the boy could step into the road. Then the mother noticed the sudden movement and rushed to snatch the boy away from the homeless man, screaming and yelling as she did so. The boy began to cry and ask for his ball. She continued to yell, first at the homeless man and then at the person on the other end of her phone call, as she took the boy without the ball and rushed away.

The homeless man, head down, walked away and returned to the spot where he had been sitting. He sat again with his sign and his coffee can. This time he took out his Rubik’s Cube and begin to twist and turn it, intently staring at it’s colorful tiles searching for a solution to its puzzle. He quickly solved it, scrambled it thoroughly and solved it again. And then again and again throughout the morning. Before long people began to stop for a few minutes and watch. Some dropped coins in his can as they left.  To be continued… 

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Generation Gap

Posted on July 3, 2011 by fast eddie

“Dad, do you know what a music festival is?! It’s a bunch of young people drinking, doing drugs and listening to music all day. Why would you want to go to that?” –my younger daughter in response to my inquiry as to whether I should get tickets to a summer music festival

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Revenge of the Raspberries

Posted on July 2, 2011 by fast eddie

Fearing for my safety, I am sharing with you the threats of a disaffected reader. If you haven’t heard from me by Wednesday, please call the police. See Revenge of the Roommates in response to Roommates.

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Ice Cream (Gelato)

Posted on July 1, 2011 by fast eddie

Do you consider ice cream a summer treat? Not me. For me, it’s a basic food group. I know some of you feel the same way. Admit it! I have been with at least one of you when we tasted every straciatella gelato in the Cinque Terre, and another one of you when we did the same thing in Lake Garda, and Florence, and Sardinia and then there was the mint chocolate chip tasting in the Hamptons, or finding the best chocolate ice cream in London (Annabel’s/Harry’s Bar), or sharing the caramel ice cream and chocolate decadence at River Cafe. Come on, admit it! Let’s hear your tales of indulgence. Here are some of my favorite ice cream or gelato picks (this may take more than one day!):

  • Annabel’s/Harry’s Bar, London:  Both venues (same owner) share the same chocolate gelato recipe, rich, dark and decadent, best I’ve ever had;
  • River Cafe, London: Toasted almond and caramel, two of the most unique and heavenly flavors on their constantly changing menu;
  • Grom, Milan, Florence, NYC: Becoming global so let’s hope it remains great and lives up to the hype;
  • Vivoli, Florence: Owned and run by the same family since 1930, near the Piazza Santa Croce, find it!;
  • Volta, Buenos Aires: The Italian influence in Argentina is strong and the gelato lives up to its heritage;
  • Bobbie’s Dairy Dip, Nashville: Fresh fruit mixed into the shakes, throwback ambience, good old-fashioned fun (with a burger on the side);
  • Candy Kitchen, Bridgehampton: The peach ice cream in season!;
  • Edy’s Slow Churned Mint Chocolate Chip, the grocery store: a summer standard;
  • Baskin Robbins, everywhere: My father used to bring home the 5-gallon cartons that they serve from in the store–he wasn’t a very good influence–their mint chocolate chip is still my favorite;
  • Friendly’s, Westbury: Not sure the Fribble is really even ice cream, but I remember sucking on these in high school until my head was about to implode; and
  • Carvel, mostly in my memory: This is how it all started, dripping pieces of frozen chocolate all over myself, before I switched to sprinkles.
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