Man Can Cook #18: Say Cheese!

Cheese is part chemistry, part alchemy, part performance art. There aren't many things that we eat that we intentionally let get this close to dangerously inedible before consumption. For some cheeses, the closer they are to that point, the better they are. That kind of cheese making is better left to the experts. There is another  kind of cheese making is fit for rank amateurs like you and I.

Mozzarella is pretty awesome stuff. Anyone with 1/2 a taste bud though can pick out the difference between the rubbery rubbish in the "cheese" aisle (between the Velveeta nut-ball and the pepper-jack) and the good stuff found in higher end markets. What's the difference? Heat, chemicals & machines. The rubbery stuff is pasteurized, full of preservatives and is totally overworked by machines. The good stuff isn't. What do ya say we make the good stuff?

There are a few reasons to get after this as a project now, rather than later.

• Meddlesome douchebags don't want you to be able to purchase raw milk or have unpasteurized cheese. When was the last time you heard of someone getting sick from milk or cheese? Me either. Let's move on.

• Because of the above, those same meddlesome douchebags have conspired with the government to create nanny-state regulations which  have made raw milk tough to find. Locate someone who sells it, and make it worth their while to continue to do so. The stores that sell it, don't like to promote that fact so as not to draw attention. Just help keep them selling, by buying.

• Summer is going to be here in but a few months. That means tomatoes and that means caprese. You want to make sure you have this down PAT by the time your tomatoes are coming ripe.

So, my fellow Americans, let us stand together in defiance of douchebaggery. Give the finger to the "conventional thinking" of the nanny state. We've got no time for petty, parsimonious, pathogenic perplexities. We've got cheese to make!

Man Can Cook #17: Jump Out Da Gym Jambalaya.

Admittedly, March Madness isn't among my favorite sporting events. NCAA basketball has lost it's shine in my eyes since so many of the players leave early to the NBA and because there is just so much of it on TV during the regular season, I'm approaching saturation point by the time March rolls around and the coverage goes to 11. That said, I know most folks don't feel the same way and are totally wrapped up in it so I thought I'd toss out a good, quick recipe to help you out in the event you are having a bunch of folks over on a weeknight to watch a few games.

This Jambalaya recipe is pretty quick and easy. The prep only takes a few minutes and it's on the table in about 45min flat. I'll include a couple of options in case you'd like to spruce it up when you've got more time.

The Obama Administration And "Green Investment"; A Track Record Of Ineptitude

I’m not one given to ad hominem attack. In my opinion, all that matters are the facts. If a person cannot argue based on facts and resorts to getting personal or going after the credibility of the source it’s likely because they’ve run out of intelligent things to say.

In that vein, I think it’s important, as we approach a Presidential election to focus squarely on facts. To make the argument for or against candidate “X” or “Y” solely based on performance and policy. One of the issues that I care about most is the historically irresponsible spending that has taken place since our current President took office specifically where “green energy” spending is concerned. I’ve written about the topic in the past with respect to Solyndra here:  The Folly of "Green Jobs" Spending

Men & Machines #2

Vimeo's content is really getting fantastic. With increasing frequency I am finding great short films documenting the work and the motivations that drive genuine craftsmen. This sadly declining group amongst us who combines the creative and the industrious and melds the two into something beautiful and functional if not iconic as well.

I've a great appreciation for the man who can formulate a vision and articulate it in metal. Men who's art not only pleases the aesthetic but the visceral without losing grasp of the function.

Dustin Kott - Cafe Bike Builder


Cafe cowboy from benedict campbell on Vimeo.

A film by Benedict Campbell.

A New Family Member

As previously noted Kathy and I have been assisting with the rescue of 27 Bullmastiffs that were in a horrifically neglectful situation in Las Vegas. The dogs began to be moved from Vegas to a temporary shelter in Phoenix begining two weeks before Christmas. The following weekend Kathy and I flew to Phoenix to meet the dogs and decide if one of them was right for us.

What a decision!?!? All of them were sweet and happy to receive positive attention. But each of them have a share of problems due to their previous situation. Most with entropian, many with other physical maladies, few spayed or neutered and all of them un-vaccinated. The one we kept coming back to was "Snort". Terrible name for a dog, but rather descriptive as he does snort when sniffing and when he's happy from getting affection.

Man Can Cook #16: Cassoulet...it's French, but it's still manly!

I don’t do a great deal of traditional French cooking. Not for any real good reason other than a preference for the flavor profiles of Italian & Spanish fare of a rustic variety. If you thumb through Julia Child’s “Mastering” books you find that they are dominated by the “cuisine bourgeoisie” or the slightly higher-end of the French cookery landscape. There are exceptions to this of course, and Cassoulet is one of them.

Cassoulet is an old-world French peasants dish named for the vessel in which it is traditionally cooked, a “cassole” which is usually a deep, rather than wide, glazed stoneware baking dish. There are a number of variations according to region. The most common is the Toulouse variety which is dominated by Goose Confit as a protein with a bit of mutton. Not surprising as Toulouse is the heart of the Foie Gras production region. You gotta do something with all those geese once their ambrosial livers have been harvested. Other variations are the Cassoulet de Castelnaudary which features mainly pork and the Cassoulet de Carcassonne which often features Partridge.

Bullmastiff Rescue Crisis Update

Please follow the below link for an update on the dogs rescued from their horribly neglected situation in Las Vegas.

Bullmastiff Rescue Crisis Update 01/03/12