who's your lamby

Equally as we have arrived separate we will leave - that's just the way it is. We are in an existential existence all together, we are a philosophical contradiction.



Dont forget about my guest post at MarxFoods its all about the butter.



This is a wonderful Spanish red. The Condesa de Leganza Crianza 2001 is 100% Tempranillo from Spain. The color is a deep garnet red with purple undertones. The nose is a give-away: it’s going to be good! It is complex with a hint of licorice. In the mouth it feels voluptuous, round, and velvety smooth with an expressive ripe fruit, subtle yet structured tannins, and a perfect degree of dryness. The finish lingers at the back of the throat with hints of pine-sap. This wine really benefited from decanting and grew tastier with every breathing moment - delicious! I have to tell you that this red woke up considerably with the lamb chops, its bright fruitiness was a perfect accompaniment to the gaminess and rich fat.



The flavor of lamb takes me right back to my childhood in New Mexico and it has the power to do it with the very first bite. We raised sheep and typically had around 20 or so most of the time along with a milk cow and a milk goat and about as many chickens. Simple farm life is so different than life in NYC - I can tell you that much right now and I like them both the same.



Lamb chops with wild mushroom polenta and truffle oil surrounded by a mixed green salad looks complex, tasted more complex but came together in a heartbeat.



Wild mushroom polenta with oyster mushrooms, winecaps, blewits a little thyme and truffle oil created a delicate yet substantial balance. I would love to have this meal once a week - it was that good.



I forgot to mention that I won some cookies. Yup thats right it says it right here.

wallow in it

Why mull over things so much that you can no longer tolerate it when you can easily stew, thats right stew in it instead. My favorite stew is is a Dogg Broth when I get to sit in a hot tub sipping wine or champagne and then getting out in the snow again to cool off only to go back and stew some more. Since I dont have this luxury in my life and all I have is snow I decided to make a stew.



Beef stew is a nice comforting dish that doesnt get much play in my kitchen; for one its just stew and what is stew besides boiled meat and vegetables. If you have noticed I like to cook and for some reason I cant get over thinking how simple beef stew is and its this simplicity that keeps me away from it. Arguably you can say that there are nuances and undertones in a good beef stew that are incomparable - heck just ask Julia Child but this isnt like that - this is simple and tasty beef stew. If you want the recipe just ask - thats how I roll. (in case you are wondering the answer is - yes- I put chile in a heck of a lot of things)

Time to shop

My shop at OpenSky is up and running filling up with great new goods and gadgets every day. OpenSky has a philosophy I can believe in where shoppers and shopkeepers work together in harmony so with this harmonious concerto in mind I bring to you a few favorites that I think every kitchen cannot live without.

French Piano - 10" Whisk When a problem comes along you can whip it, whip it good.



Bodum - Brazil 8 Cup Press I have had one of these coffee makers for years and years now - nothing makes a cleaner more full bodied cup of coffee and there are no moving parts.

Marx Foods - Ghost Chile (World's Hottest) - 4 oz. Ordinarily I would tell you not to be afraid of ghosts but this ghost chile changed all of that. It will literally sneak up on you and scare the coolness right out of you - its sneaky hot. This is enough chile to supply a small army or one incredible daredevil.

Sagaform - 11 3/4 Oz. Vacuum Flask Pack away a little chili or some cocoa or tea in this fantastic vacuum bottle. Look like a real trooper when you crack this out.

Flirty Aprons - Girl's Aprons These have got to be the frilliest, coolest, cutest aprons I have ever seen. Wouldnt you love to see your kid rockin' one of these? Why stop there why not just check out this one page to see all the great things I have in store for you - the tortilla press is one of the best values around and the molcajete as well - get over there and have a look. If there are some things you have seen me use or it triggered a thought let me know and I will strive to get it in my shop. Shopping could not be any easier!

piece -o- meat

Attraction is everything from the softest sunset to the flashing fireworks, if you arent attracted well, simply put, it wont get your attention. Take 'piece of meat' for example versus 'cutlet' - which would you rather have? Which one sounds more attractive to you?



Call it it a cutlet and they will come. Pork cutlet with riced potatoes served with a pont l'eveque and grapefruit sauce. I know grapefruit and cheese, but I am here to tell you it rocks.



Lentil soup is usually such a gruel that I tend to avoid it at all costs, that is unless its made like this with a little smoky pork and a clear vegetable broth.



A nice slice of a banana cheesecake would hit the spot I can imagine.




It goes even better with a raspberry and a peanut butter chocolate sauce.

blah blah blah

Blah blah blues, I dont know if its the six more weeks of winter or what but I am in a rut. I havent posted in a while because I dont see the point but I did get some really stinky cheese from Norway, thanks Anette.

My son was off from school for a week for mid-winter break and I have to tell you it felt like a month. Ramen noodles and canned soups hardly take a pretty picture and if you believe that I have some swampland that is waiting for a check from you. Who doesnt like crab? Well the kid does and this is all I could pry from his fingers to snap off a photo. Crab ballerina.



We plowed through some chicken breasts with a POM glaze. I have so much POM I dont know what to do with it, I have made it into syrups and balsamics and granitas (thats like a sorbet) and I have even put a dab behind each ear. Remember I entered a POM contest well I have news - I didnt win, though you can click the link and check out my recipe.



Artichokes with butter are good but artichokes with a caper mayonnaise are even better.



I have been helping others lately and it feels mighty good in fact I think I might make 'generosity' one of my characteristics from here on out. StirIt 28 is a month-long blogger-originated fundraising effort to raise money for the earthquake victims in Haiti, thought up by Bren of Flanboyant Eats, Chrystal of The Duo Dishes , and Courtney of CocoCooks. All of the proceeds from this event, and I mean ALL (100%) of the proceeds, are going directly to our partner charities: Share Our Strength and Yele Haiti. What an amazing event to participate in and I am so glad I did.



The remains of amazing Lettuce Wraps (Brooklyn Forager)




Red Cooked Pork bun and cucumber salad (RedCook)

Lemongrass corn soup (BalanceFood) She also made vegetarian dumplings and did an amazing job organizing the whole thing - special thanks are in order here.

Vegetarian Spring Rolls (Chez What?) Thats me, by the way. I also made some with shrimp.

Enchiladas Rojas (Fresh, Local and Best)

Walnut Cookies (Bloggerlicious Athena) (see the edge of the cookies) and a last-minute Chocolate Banana Coconut Bread Pudding (Joanne Eats Well With Others) Joanne also made vegetarian and non vegetarian stuffed mushrooms.

Celebration Cupcakes (My Baking Therapy)

Banh Mi preparation (group effort) and several other things that were gone before a photo was taken. I met some amazing people and had a great time! All proceeds from this fundraiser will be donated to Share Our Strength and Yele Haiti at the end of the month. If you'd like to contribute, but just couldn't make it, donations will be accepted through February 28th at Flanboyant Eats.

Give - its easy

I have been getting ready for this event today. I know most of you are no where near NYC but I thought I would post about it anyway. I will post a few pictures after it is over, if I have time to take any.

relax

The Sloppy

Justin at MarxFoods was kind enough to share his creativity with us over here at ChezWhat and as glad as I am that he did I have to say that he is such a tease with this fantastically sloppy creation that I feel like he needs to be flogged, thats right flogged, flogged with a boars bristly tail for his indiscretion and insensitivity. Enjoy!

It’s called “THE Sloppy.” And, it kick’s Joe’s ass. So much so that we couldn’t even find a name to replace “Joe”. We used ground wild boar meat, but you can probably use whatever ground meat your carnivorous heart desires. Brown the meat with some chopped onions.

Then add some pureed tomatoes, brown sugar, powdered mustard, garlic powder, Worcestershire (go easy on it), smoked paprika and salt. Use more pureed tomatoes than you think you need, because this is going to cook down by about a third and get nice and thick in about three quarters of an hour (thats 45 minutes in case you needed to know) and then this would be a good time to adjust seasoning.

When the mixture is almost done getting sloppy, start thinking about the rest of the sandwich. Fry some fresh jalapeno slices in olive oil until the seeds are lightly browned, then dry on a paper towel.

Fry an egg over easy. We used duck, big fat duck eggs.

Finally, rub a split brioche bun with some melted butter and grill it toast it or fry it in a cast iron skillet, toaster or broiler.

Grab a hand towel and huddle over THE Sloppy as you flash back to childhood and have a quiet moment to yourself. Dont believe it - check out the complete recipe and live it!

Eye Heart U

Hey its Valentines day!



You could celebrate Valentines all year if you had one of these waffle makers otherwise the heart shaped things only come out once per year.



Delicious malted waffles with mixed berries, powdered sugar and agave syrup.



Waffles getting ready.



Life isnt always perfect and this waffle proves it.

curried goat

Strong bold flavors are good friends with Bordeaux. Typically Bordeaux wines are rich and deep with fruity berry flavors that gives way to a noble woodsiness as they age and a good mouth feel with the tannins as they breathe, it is this depth that allows them to stand up to heavy dishes and strong cheese - this is why Bordeaux is known as the King of wine.



This young Bordeaux Superieur was incredibly drinkable and went so nicely with the goat curry, brown jasmine rice and lentils. Its broad fruitiness melded beautifully with the spiciness of the dish. I did a little search of my blog and it looks like we had goat almost exactly two years ago - but that wasnt the only time I am sure.



I almost forgot to mention the labne, this was mixed with a little cilantro and green onion and was a fantastic accompaniment with the curry.



The St. Emilion was exceptional with the cheese assortment. It was a nice way to round off the husky flavors of the curry and to wind down the palate with a mix of delicious cheeses where each one could have stood on its own as perfection.



There was the blue assortment.



Morbier was probably the most delicate of the cheeses and its milky mellowness really brought out the smooth mouth feel of the St. Emilion.



The goat cheese was a unique flavor after having had goat curry it presented itself so confidently.



As I said before these are not the most expensive of the Bordeaux wines but as far as I am concerned any Bordeaux is better than no Bordeaux.