Michigan Sweet Corn: Extra Good!

Posted on 4 August 2007 under Catering etc. | 2 Comments

Last night during a phone call with Chef Tad of the Frog Leg Inn in Erie, he told me how the sweet corn at nearby Smith Bros. seemed to be at its peak right now. Getting over to the Smith Bros. Corner Farm Market at the (you guessed it!) corner of Luna Pier/Samaria Road and Strasburg Road (just west of Telegraph/M-24) late this morning, Briahna and I found a couple bins of some of the best sweet corn we’ve seen in a while. In the above photo of Bri picking out a dozen ears to bring home, you can see one of the sweet corn fields across the street from the market. Of course, Smith Bros. also carries lots of other beautiful fruits and vegetables, so get yourself on over there while the gettin’s good!

London to Mongolia … In an Ice Cream Truck

Posted on 24 July 2007 under Catering etc., Food In The News | 4 Comments

From this article on the BBC:

To drive from London to Mongolia takes some doing. To try it in this ice cream van, stopping to serve cones to passers-by and border guards along the way, is one step beyond … The Mongol Rally is a charity event limited to 200 teams and this year all the places were snapped up in under one minute … Each team has to design their own route and, unsurprisingly, not all vehicles are expected to make it over the finishing line. The principal charity for the Mongol Rally is Mercy Corps with the money raised funding projects in Mongolia that support rural communities … Ten thousand miles of freezing mountains and scorching deserts - temperatures potentially hitting 50°C and going as low as -25°C. That’s 20 countries in 30 days and about one third of the way round the earth. In an ice cream van … Swales Yorkshire Dales ice cream gave us a fully functioning ice cream van and all the delicious ice cream we need to deliver along the way.

Go spend some time with the rest of the article for some more amazing stats, and great photos.

Castleberry and Other Brands of Hot Dog & Chili Sauces Recalled

Posted on 19 July 2007 under Catering etc. | No Comments

Castleberry, maker of a number of hot dog sauce, chili, and other products, is voluntarily recalling some recent items. From Castleberry’s own announcement:

The recall only affects those products listed … with a “Best By” date of April 30, 2009 through May 22, 2009 … If you have eaten the affected product and are experiencing the following symptoms, you should seek immediate medical care. Symptoms may include general weakness, dizziness, double-vision and trouble with speaking or swallowing. Difficulty in breathing, weakness of other muscles, abdominal distension and constipation may also be common symptoms.

I’m going to have to check our pantry as I think there might be some of Castleberry’s Hot Dog Chili Sauce in there. This is one of the items affected by the recall, and I know Kroger and Meijer carry it locally, along with their own branded products that are made by Castleberry.

Check the official list of recalled Castleberry, Kroger, Meijer and other branded products against your own pantry ASAP!

The Portable Omelet Buffet Kit

Posted on 18 July 2007 under Catering etc., Kitchen Gear | 1 Comment

A few months ago, 14-year-old Adam and I did an omelet buffet for Mary and her girlfriends. At that time I’d picked up some decent catering-grade storage containers for the omelet filling mise en place, which worked rather well, and had a couple commercial-grade non-stick frypans from Wear-Ever Lincoln Foodservice. Since then there’s been plenty of discussion about my doing other omelet buffets for various purposes, such as Senior Centers. I’d picked up a Pro-Cook M0005 portable butane gas stove from GFS Marketplace for $27, along with some butane canisters (a pack of four for $7).

The thing’s been in my closet for … three months? No, must be four …

The talk has continued about my doing the omelet thing on a regular basis. Looking through a Cabela’s catalog last week I found their three-burner cast iron stove. I mentioned this to Mary, that I could cook an omelet on each of the outer burners while sautéeing fillings in the middle, similar to how they do it at the Marriott World Center in Orlando. She liked that idea. But then I added up the necessary hose, the carry bag, a filled 20 lb lp gas bottle, and we’re suddenly way past $100 for three burners. And I still needed another 10″ fry pan.

Then something clicked: I remembered I’d looked at single-burner stoves similar to the Pro-Chef at an Asian grocery in Ann Arbor … for $17! I had one burner already, and could get the other two for $34, carry cases included. So yesterday, I did just that, picking up two Thunder Range stoves, and more butane for running all three stoves. I also picked up the other 10″ pan at GFS.

The picture shows the completed kit, minus utensils. The pans came to $55, the cookers were a total of $61 (if the three were the same Thunder Range brand they would have been $51), eight cans of butane was $14, and the mise en place containers came to $15 or so. So, over a period of four months I spent about $145 putting this kit together, instead of over $200 going the lp gas route that I could only use outside.

Let’s see … need some fiberboard plates … plasticware … paper napkins … ummm … oh, yeah, eggs! … right, and maybe some cheese …

A Lunchtime Summer Salad

Posted on 24 June 2007 under Catering etc. | 2 Comments

For lunch today Mary made us some salads. They looked so good, I had to take a picture.

Luna Pier City-Wide Yard Sale, June 30th: Getchyer Corndogs!

Posted on 21 June 2007 under Catering etc., Special Events | 6 Comments

Next Saturday, June 30th, the city of Luna Pier will once again be hosting its annual City-Wide Yard Sale & Freedom Festival. Officially the yard sales start at 8 a.m and last till, oh, I’d say, 4 or 5 in the afternoon. There are literally 100 or more individual yard sales going on, mostly along Harold Dr., but also down the various side streets.

There’s also lots of food happening during this time. (Of course there is, why else would I be writing this?! :-) ) Generally, both Sweet Temptations, at the end of Luna Pier Rd. near the beach, and the VFW post, further north on Harold Dr., will offer meals of BBQ ribs and chicken around the noon hours (often longer). Last year at the beachfront there were also concession trailers offering freshly-made onion rings and good lemonade. And at some residences near their yard sales, you might find kids with their dad’s grills, offering hamburgers and/or hotdogs, and chilled cans of pop and bottled water.

I have previously discussed making and selling a modified version of my Michigan Corndogs at last year’s event, selling 50 of the little hand-dipped beasties. I’d told Mary I really didn’t want to do the same this year. I didn’t like dealing with the change from the $1.50 price, I could only cook 3 corndogs at a time in my deep-fryer and felt bad when a line of people formed, and I wasn’t able to do any shopping of my own.

In complaining about this to a chef from the Toledo area, I was suddenly offered a restaurant-grade countertop dual deep-fryer for the duration of the yard sale. And it dawned on me that, if I use a better-grade hot dog, maybe even the Koegel Viennas, I could charge $2 each, not have to deal with coinage at all, and sell more because they taste better.

Besides, the other evening when I said I wouldn’t be doing them this year, my best customer from last year, a teenage boy named Jason, actually looked distressed.

Dang. I guess I’ve changed my mind.

I guess I’ll shop until about 9:30 or so, and start making and selling Michigan Corndogs at 10 a.m.

I’ll need some mustard … and the big box of Jiffy corn muffin mix …

In the evening, after the dinner hour, the Freedom Festival will start, with music, awards, and after dusk, fireworks, launched from the concrete pier.

Maybe we’ll see you there!

Butane Cooker

Posted on 27 May 2007 under Catering etc. | 1 Comment

Should I’ve? Or shouldn’t I’ve? Only my hairdresser knows for sure.

Ok, so I don’t have a hairdresser. Ok, so I’m a little shy on hair, too …

If you’ll look at the comments on my previous post, Jaden from Steamy Kitchen teases me a bit about carting my portable butane cooker up here to Flint to cook one of Jaden’s own Korean BBQ dishes for my mom in her hospital bed. Mom’s been home since Friday evening so I didn’t bring the cooker along.

If you do any type of out-of-the-kitchen cooking, you should think about getting one of these little butane cookers. Honestly, you should get one so you can do more out-of-the-kitchen cooking. They’re actually more useful than you could possibly imagine.

For the official video for last month’s Taste of the Nation: Toledo, Mary and I shot beautiful HD widescreen of a couple dozen chefs using these little beasties to cook things like Rouge Bistro’s Steak & Shrimp with Tarragon, and Chef Alan from Evan’s Street Station in Tecumseh making some amazing pan-fried wraps that make my mouth water just thinking about them. Chef Tad of the Frog Leg Inn uses one of these cookers when he does tableside cooking demonstrations. And of course, they’re well-known for their use in tabletop cooking for patrons in Asian restaurants for dishes exactly like Jaden’s Korean BBQ dish.

If you’re in the Michigan/Ohio area, there’s a version in a case at GFS Marketplace for $27, with a 4-pack of butane cans for $7.

Ok, imagine this. It’s your anniversary. The kids are at grandma’s, you’ve both taken the day off (of course!), and you want to do something special for your significant other. Why not grab a TV tray and your portable butane cooker, cart them upstairs with some eggs and French baguettes and not only serve them breakfast in bed, but cook at the bedside as well? Talk about romantic! Guys, yes, you can do this, too!

The possibilities are endless. Think about it.

Omelet Buffet: Done!

Posted on 3 February 2007 under Catering etc., Cooking Classes | 4 Comments

This morning, Briahna, Adam and I cooked omelets for 10 people for Mary’s Bible study group. Having prepped for hours yesterday evening, then completing more prep this morning before heading out, it went mostly without a hitch.

Frankly, the best part about this buffet was the appreciation from the diners themselves. That always makes this kind of work more fun.

So, as promised, the pictures of this event, in a massive house near Lourdes College in Sylvania, Ohio:


Adam at the cooktop, with a finished
omelet in the foreground, and some of
the mise en place.

Read the rest of this entry…

An Omelet CLASS??

Posted on 24 January 2007 under Catering etc., Cooking Classes | 3 Comments

On alternate Saturday mornings, my wife and a few other gals from Crossroads Community Church in Ottawa Lake meet for Bible study and chit-chat. This is a great group of ladies, really it is. I once did an hour-long video documentary on a couple of their events, which they really appreciated.

It’s been about a year since I’d done anything for these ladies. They’re some of Mary’s closest friends, and I always appreciate what they do for her when she needs someone.

This past Saturday I suggested I put together an omelet buffet for them prior to one of their meetings, and cook them breakfast to-order. Mary and I have discussed my doing this at nursing homes she deals with on occasion, and I’ve been kinda slow in working towards this.

I guess this suggestion went over just a tad too well.

Read the rest of this entry…

The Resulting Devastation

Posted on 21 January 2007 under Catering etc., Food Safety | 3 Comments

The impromptu dinner party we had yesterday evening ended up going well, and everyone seemed happy and satisfied. Here, Briahna attacks the flowing wing sauce in the chocolate fountain:

When the fountain is flowing with chocolate, the liquid flows better because of the viscosity of the chocolate. I realized too late that the wing sauce was far too thin for the fountain’s design. Next time I’ll add a bit of corn starch to thicken the wing sauce up a bit so it will flow better. Of course, that would also make the sauce stick to the wings better and give them a thicker coating.

The salad fixins ended up downright nice in their presentation:

Read the rest of this entry…

Next Entries » « Previous Entries