Broccoli Cheese Soup

Simply the best Broccoli Cheese Soup you will ever have. Remember to NOT buy grated cheddar. Grate the cheese yourself for better flavor.

Prep Time: 45 minutes Total Servings: 6

1 tablespoon butter, melted $.25
1/2 medium onion, chopped $.50
1/4 cup melted butter $.75
1/4 cup flour $.50
2 cups half-and-half $1.50
2 cups chicken stock or bouillion $1.00
1/2 lb. fresh broccoli $2.00
salt and pepper to taste $.10
8 ozs. grated sharp cheddar $2.00

Total Cost: $8.60 Cost per serving: $1.44

Saute onion in butter. Set aside. Cook melted butter and flour using a whisk over medium heat for 3-5 minutes. Stir constantly and slowly add the half-and-half (this is called making a roux). Add the chicken stock whisking all the time. Simmer for 20 minutes.

Add the broccoli and cooked onions. Cook over low heat until the veggies are tender for 20-25 minutes. Add salt and pepper. The soup should be thickened by now. Pour in batches into blender and puree.
Return to pot over low heat and add the grated cheese; stir until well blended.

French Onion Soup

Another extremely easy recipe. Once you try this, you will wonder why you ever bought anything out of a can or a box. I love this meal, and if you make it for others, they will be delighted. Make sure to get good quality Gruyere and a nice quality baguette. A good baguette should make a slight crisp sound when you squeeze, like a cracker, but be chewy on the inside.

Prep Time: 15 Minutes Servings: 6

32 oz. beef broth $2.00
2 white onions $1.60
2 tbsp. of EVOO $.35
8 ounces of Gruyere $7.00
A baguette $1.50
Salt and pepper $.10
1 tbsp. Thyme $.25

Total Cost $12.80 Cost per serving: $2.14

Heat EVOO in a large stock pot. Add onions and sautee until onions are soft. Add the thyme and the beef stock. Bring to a boil and then lower to a simmer. The soup is ready. Slice the baguette into round wafers, and you can slice the Gruyere into slices or shred it. This really depends on your bowl situation. WIth proper oven kettles, slices work best because you will fill the kettle with soup, then place the sliced baguettes on top of the soup, then the slices of gruyere, and place in the oven to broil until the gruyere is melted and "brown" a little. If you don't have kettle bowls, then shredding it, and (do I dare say) microwaving it until the cheese is melted is okay. Of course, you can also let the heat from the soup melt the cheese.
Bon Apetit!

Four Bean Chili

This has honestly got to be the easiest recipe I can offer. It is quick, easy, delicious, and cheap! You can add ground beef to it, if you want meat, or leave it out for a vegetarian-style chili. Just brown the beef, and add it to the list of ingredients. Anywhere between a half-pound to a pound will be enough.

Prep Time: 15 minutes Servings: 8

Navy Beans $.80
Pinto Beans $.80
Great Northern Beans $.80
Diced Tomatoes $.80
Rotel Chili Fixins' $1.00
Chili Seasoning $1.00

Total cost: $5.20 Cost per serving: $.65

Open all the cans up, beans, tomatoes, and rotel, and pour into a large pot. Add the packet of chili seasoning (McCormick's or something that you prefer.) Stir together, and heat to a low boil. Reduce heat and let simmer 15 minutes. Done! That is it! You're welcome!

You can top each serving with diced onions and/or cheese for a great bowl of chili.

RESTAURANT REVIEW- The Little Tea Shop

The Little Tea Shop is a famous, little place in Downtown Memphis that has been on the Food Network and has a lot of popularity. It has been open for many, many years, and so I figured it was about time I tried it out.
First of all, it is not a tea shop. There is no tea other than regular old iced tea, and though they boast healthy, "vegetable" plates, I found nothing healthy, dainty, or little about The Little Tea Shop. It is a greasy spoon lunch place that does service like it was 1952. All of the vegetables are cooked to a sopping mess, and the daily specials and "salads" are full of more calories than most hamburgers.
The service was atrocious and incompetent. Our server seemed to be bothered that we were eating lunch there. The place was packed which made me wonder if Downtown workers need more places to eat, or do they enjoy the heavy loads of commercial grade, canned vegetables that are opened, heated and slathered with butter for a midday meal.
I ordered the hamburger steak and my dining partner ordered the salmon croquettes. Of the choices of vegetables, there was macaroni and cheese (which is not a vegetable) and french fries (which I do not consider a vegetable). The food came out quickly because I am sure it is sitting in a huge pan or pot waiting to be doled out. My vegetables were steamed cabbage, which was actually good, and turnip greens (straight from a can). My hamburger steak was a foodservice product, something a cafeteria would serve, smothered in a brown gravy. It was disgusting, unbearable to eat. My guest's salmon croquettes were laughable, pre-made nuggets. I could not find a single trace of salmon, which makes me wonder, what part of the fish they were using. Her french fries were frozen product (nothing special), and her casserole was too disgusting to eat more than one bite of.
The meal costs us $27.00 after tip which is harder to swallow than the food. It seems as though The Little Tea Shop survives on past successes, or provides starved Downtown employees with a much need alternative. It makes me want to open a restaurant down there because I cannot believe people would choose to eat there daily. And if any of the diners think that the healthy "vegetable" options will help them lose weight, I hate to be the bearer of bad news.
After eating there, I searched for reviews of The Little Tea Shop online and found many, many positive reviews. It makes me wonder if Memphians know good food. A place like The Little Tea Shop would not last 5 days in another metropolitan area. The food is the lowest quality food you can purchase, prepared in the simplest way, served in the worst fashion, with the most expensive price tag. Me and my guest could've dined at a dozen fine dining restaurants in town for the same price.
The Little Tea Shop is a dinosaur that is being resuscitated by the weak palates of diners who have no concept of value. I would not suggest the place to anyone, unless they are looking for a colon cleanse.

Grocery List and Menu for this Week

I seem to be on a soup kick. I guess the cold weather is making me want soup. And what can I say, it's cheap and easy to make. This week, I have four meals posted because of Christmas parties and other nights out. So here is our menu for this week with a grocery list.

Broccoli Cheese Soup
Four-Bean Chili
Pasta Primavera
French Onion Soup

Cheddar Cheese
16 oz. half & half
32 oz. Chicken Broth
Navy Beans
Pinto Beans
Great Northern Beans
Diced Tomatoes
Rotel Chili Fixins'
Chili Seasoning
Gruyere
Beef Broth
Baguette
Broccoli
3 Onions
zucchini
mushrooms
cherry tomatoes

Butternut Squash Soup

I have never had this soup before, but I had seen it, and it looks amazing. It is so common this time of year, yet so hard to find at restaurants, so I decided to make it myself.

Peeling the squash can be the hardest part. I used my best paring knife and carefully trimmed the rough rind off. It wasn't as hard as I thought it would be, but there are different methods across the internet if you Google it, you will find many, many options. Some may suit your fancy better. Scoop out the seeds with a spoon.

***You can make this vegetarian by substituting the Chicken Stock for Vegetable Stock.

Prep Time: 1 hour Total Servings: 10

2 tablespoons butter $.25
1 small onion, chopped $.75
1 stalk celery, chopped $1.50
1 medium carrot, chopped $.50
2 medium potatoes, cubed $1.75
1 medium butternut squash - peeled, seeded, and cubed $2.00
1 (32 fluid ounce) container chicken stock $2.00
salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste $.25

Total cost: $9.00 Cost per serving: $.90

Melt the butter in a large pot, and cook the onion, celery, carrot, potatoes, and squash 5 minutes, or until lightly browned. Pour in enough of the chicken stock to cover vegetables. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low, cover pot, and simmer 40 minutes, or until all vegetables are tender.
Transfer the soup to a blender, and blend until smooth. Return to pot, and mix in any remaining stock to attain desired consistency. Season with salt and pepper.

You can freeze the leftover soup for lunches and dinners in the future.

Gruyere Grilled Cheese Sandwiches on a bed of Mesculun Greens with Humboldt Fog

This sounds complex, but it is quite simple. It is basically a grilled cheese sandwich on a bed of greens. But this is no ordinary grilled cheese sandwich. Instead of white bread, butter, and American cheese, we will be using an 8-grain loaf, chive butter, and gruyere. The salad can be made with Mesculun greens or spring mix, and will be tossed in a chive vinaigrette. And lastly, we will be placing a small wedge of Humbodt Fog Cheese on the salad. Humboldt Fog is a very expensive Californian, cave-grown cheese. It is amazing because it has a layer of brie, goat, and bleu cheese, all in one. These flavors mesh to create a beautiful spectrum, and intertwined with the chive vinaigrette, it is a flavor you will never forget.

Prep Time: 10 minutes Total servings: 2

4 slices 8 grain or whole wheat bread $.50
6 oz. of gruyere sliced $2.00
Four tbls. butter $.30
3 oz. of chives $2.00
4 oz. of Humboldt Fog Cheese $6.00
8 ozs. of Mesculun greens or spring mix $1.50
2 oz. of EVOO $.25
1 oz. of Balsamic Vinegar $.30
1 garlic clove $.10

Total Cost: $12.95 Cost per serving: $6.50

The Sandwich:
First make the butter. Soften the butter by leaving it sit out for an hour, or give it ten seconds or so in the microwave. Run the all the chives through a food processor (or blender). You can leave the minced chives in the blender for the dressing, and take out just enough (maybe 1 tsp. ) and mix in with your softened butter. Add a pinch of salt. You now have chive butter.

Heat a clean, dry skillet until it is very hot. Butter one side of each piece of bread, and lay the butter side down of one piece in the hot pan. Quickly, add the gruyere to the middle of the sandwich. Then top the sandwich with the other piece of bread, butter side up. It is grilled cheese, but fancy. You may have to drop the heat on the sandwich, depending on your stove top. The fresh chive can scorch, but a little is okay. Carefully flip the sandwich when the underside is well-toasted. The sandwich is done when the cheese is melted. Gruyere is not as milky as our processed American, so it will not be melted like oozing, but it should be very, very soft. Remove from the pan and cut into two triangles.

The Salad:
With the chives in the processor (or blender), add the garlic, EVOO, and Balsamic vinegar and a small amount of salt and pepper. Blend until emulsified. Toss in with the greens.

Plate a pile of salad in the middle of the plate. Slice a small wedge of Humboldt Fog and place in the middle of the pile. Surround the Humbodlt Fog with your grilled cheese wedges for a great presentation. The BEST Grilled Cheese Sandwich you have ever had.

Top 10 Things You Should Eat in New Orleans that You May Have Never Heard Of

Everyone is familiar with Cafe Du Monde, and muffelettas from Central Grocery, but how about the really great places that are off the beaten path. Having lived in New Orleans and worked at the Monteleone Hotel in the center of the French Quarter, suggesting great places that people could not find in their travel books was a great way to make a guest's stay even more memorable. Finding a new place, away from large masses of tourists is the best. So here are a few suggestions for you. In no particular order.

1. The "All That Jazz" po-boy at Verti Marte- Verti Marte's website claims that they are the "Best Kept Secret in the French Quarter," and they might be right. This is almost strictly a local's place, and their po-boys are exceptional. The one that the locals go nuts for is the "All That Jazz". It is a medley of grilled ham, turkey & shrimp, swiss & american cheese accompanied by grilled mushrooms, tomatoes, on grilled french bread with our original "Wow Sauce". Now it sounds a bit extreme, and it is, but there is nothing like it on this planet. I treated my wife to one of these and a bottle of white wine while dining across Decatur from Jackson Square as the sun went down, and it was magical.

2. Anything fried at Jacques-imo's- Jacques-imo's is the funkiest restaurant in New Orleans. The food varies from fried chicken to tuna with brie in a champagne sauce. Be sure to order something fried while there, even if it is simply an appetizer. The fried recipes come from the world's most famous fry chef Austin Leslie. There are no reservations, unless you have a party of five or more, and you better make them 30 days in advance. For those of us who do not have three or four other friends to drag out to dinner, I suggest getting to the restaurant when it opens at 5:30pm, because the line will wind around the block.

3. Barbecued Oysters at Ralph Brennan's Red Fish Grill: The Brennan's family is synonymous with great dining, and though most locals don't dine at the Brennan's restaurants too often (seeing as they are packed with tourists), I do send many friends to the hectic and crowded Red Fish Grill on Bourbon Street to sample the very different Barbecue Oysters. Of course, barbecue in New Orleans is totally different then anywhere else in the world, and these little nuggets stretch the definition even further. They are actually fried oysters tossed in the local favorite hot sauce, Crystal's (which has more vinegar and flavor than it does spice) then topped with bleu cheese crumbles and drizzled bleu cheese dressing. Sit at the bar and take down two dozen of these babies. They are so good, I convinced the owners of Paulette's here in Memphis to put them on the menu. We ran them as a special for a couple of weeks, and the demand was so high, they are a permanent fixture. At a Louisiana Restaurant Association Trade Show, I met Ralph Brennan, and I expressed my love for the recipe. He said thank you and said, "You know what else would be good... Frying the oysters and rolling them in a worcestershire glaze and topping them with cream cheese." My eyes got big and I told him he was a genius. He laughed and said the recipe was mine to use if I wanted to.

4. Domilise's- Speaking of oysters, the best oyster po-boy in town has to be at the neighborhood Uptown hole-in-the-wall called Domilise's (5240 Annunciation St.). A place you probably wouldn't normally go into for its rough exterior, Domilise's interior is a quintessential New Orleans neighborhood bar and eatery. All of the po-boys are great, but the oyster po-boy is spectacular. And the atmosphere is unbeatable.

5. Hansen's- An overlooked aspect of New Orleans cuisine is the sno-ball. Almost a staple to life in a climate that doesn't see weather dip to below 60 degrees all too often, sno-ball (called sno-cones by us Yankees) stands can be found in many New Orleans neighborhoods, but the best of the best is Hansen's (4801 Tchoupitoulas St). Hansen's is in the same neighborhood as Domilise's and makes for a perfect dessert. The family has been making sno-balls since 1939 and it is the most beloved sno-ball stand in all of New Orleans. The family faced tragedy during Katrina, but lucky for us, they reopened.

6. La Crepe Nanou- In a town full of cajun, creole, and other influences, sometimes the original French influence of the city can be overlooked. Not at Crepe Nanou. Located in Uptown, Crepe Nanou offers authentic French bistro fare in an exquisite atmosphere. The food is phenomenal and the dining room is beautiful. Forget the bustle at Commander's Palace. Go to Crepe Nanou for a cozy, relaxing night out.

7. Port of Call- On the edge of the French Quarter sits the best burger joint in town. Port of Call is a one-of-a-kind place, that serves up award winning hamburgers that go down so well with a cold draft beer. Get a spot at the bar and enjoy the nautical decor as you chomp down an enormous patty cooked perfectly. On Saturdays, the place is bursting at the seams as a Port of Call burger and Bloody Mary seem to be a popular hangover cure-all.

8. Lola's- I hate to mention this place. I hate it because in my opinion it is the best restaurant in town, and the word is getting out, and the wait is already too long, but I love this place so much, I cannot keep it from you. Lola's is located on beautiful Esplanade Avenue. It seats maybe thirty people, and it does not take reservations. The fare is Spanish, and you won't find more reasonable prices for what you get anywhere (not just in New Orleans, anywhere in the world). The food is perfectly prepared with great ingredients and it is ridiculously inexpensive. They do not take checks or credit cards, and they do not serve wine (bring your own). Lola's is the best kept secret in the entire city, and you should definitely go.

9. Camelia Grill- Now this place you may have heard of, but I will include it anyway. I feel like no Saturday morning would be complete without a 6-mile trolley ride down St. Charles Avenue to Carrollton to enjoy breakfast at the Camelia Grill. The Camelia Grill is a greasy-spoon place with no-frills yet seriously sincere service. Order a chocolate freeze as you sit at the counter watching the organized chaos in the kitchen unfold.

10. Southern Candymakers- And if you are looking for pralines, search no further. Southern Candymakers on Decatur Street in the French Quarter is the place to go. They have the most delectable pralines in the entire city, and no trip to New Orleans is complete without a great praline.

Vegetarian Red Beans & Rice

Probably the most famous dish in New Orleans. Traditionally served on Mondays, so the leftover ham, and ham bone, from Sunday lunch would not go to waste, red beans and rice is a staple of all locals in New Orleans. You can find many, many recipes for red beans and rice. The one I am posting today DOES NOT have meat in it. But you can easily add diced ham, sausage (andouille) or bacon to the recipe and have a legitimate New Orleans-style red beans and rice. And any true New Orleanian will tell you, it isn't the meat, it's the beans that make the dish. Finding red beans is hard outside of Louisiana, but you can substitute red kidney beans.

***BEANS MUST SOAK FOR 8 HOURS BEFORE COOKING***

Prep Time: 3 hours Servings: 16

1 pound dried red beans, rinsed and sorted over $1.00
1 chopped yellow onion $1.00
1 chopped celery bunch $2.00
1 chopped green bell peppers $.80
salt and pepper $.10
Pinch cayenne $.10
3 bay leaves $.10
2 tablespoons parsley $.20
2 teaspoons thyme $.10
3 cloves chopped garlic $.10
10 cups water
4 cups cooked white rice $.75
EVOO: $.15

Total Cost $6.40 Cost per serving $.42

Place the beans in a large bowl or pot and cover with water by 2 inches. Let soak for 8 hours or overnight. Drain and set aside.

In a large pot, heat the EVOO over medium-high heat. Add the onions, celery and bell peppers to the oil in the pot. Season with the salt, pepper, and cayenne, and cook, stirring, until the vegetables are soft, about 4 minutes. Add the bay leaves, parsley, thyme, (and this is where you would add your sausage, ham and/or ham hocks if so desired) and cook, stirring, about 4 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute. Add the beans and water, stir well, and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer, uncovered, stirring occasionally, until the beans are tender and starting to thicken, about 2 hours. (Should the beans become too thick and dry, add more water, about 1/4 cup at a time.)

Remove from the heat and remove the bay leaves.

Southwest Chicken Soup

So, this is going to be a favorite, for sure. Anything with cumin in it, is great. Anything with cilantro, is wonderful. Anything with both, is ridiculously insanely good. Trust me.

Prep Time: 45 minutes Servings: 8

1 lb. chicken breast $4.00
42 oz. Chicken Broth $2.50
1 can of corn $.70
1 can of black beans $.70
1 can of diced tomatoes $.70
1 bunch of cilantro $.90
1 small white onion $.75
salt and pepper $.10
1 tbsp. Cumin $.50
2 tsp. Taco Seasoning $.50
EVOO $.25
Bay leaves $.40
two cloves of garlic $.25

Total Cost: $12.20 Cost per serving $1.53

I bake my chicken, seasoned with salt and pepper at 350F for 30 minutes. Like I have stated before, baking chicken all at once, will save you time. That is why we had Chicken salad yesterday, and now soup with chicken in it today. Think EASY! Dice the chicken into bite-sized pieces when finished. Drain the "water" out of the corn, black beans, and tomatoes, and rinse in a strainer. Dice the onion and garlic and sautee in a a stock pot with the EVOO. Add salt and pepper. Once onions soften, drop in beans and corn. Sautee one minute. Add the broth, tomatoes, chicken, cumin, bay leaves and taco seasoning. Bring to a boil, then simmer for 15 minutes. Right before serving, finely chop the cilantro and add that to the soup. You want it to wilt slightly in the soup. Salt and pepper to taste, and if you are like me, you may want to add more cumin. I love the stuff. For a little extra joy, you can add tortilla chips before serving, or fresh slices of avocado. So good!!!!

Bleu Cheese Chicken Salad

This is one of the simplest and best chicken salad recipes I have ever made. Paulette's served this at lunch, and we couldn't make the stuff fast enough. Here we go.

Prep time: 40 minutes Servings 8

1 lb. of chicken $4.00
1 stalk of celery $2.00
1/2 bunch of red grapes $2.00
6oz. Bleu Cheese $4.00
Walnuts (pieces are cheaper and okay to use) $2.00
2-3 Tablespoons of Mayonnaise $.30
salt and pepper $.10
OPTIONAL:
A cap full of white vinegar $.10
A few dashes of Tabasco $.10

Total Cost $14.40 Cost per serving $1.80

Season the chicken with salt and pepper. Bake the chicken at 350F for 30 minutes. Once finished, dice the chicken. Chop the celery. Slice the grapes in half. Crumble the bleu cheese. And combine all ingredients together. Start with just a tablespoon of mayo, and add more to get the consistency you prefer. I have found some folks (like me) LOVE mayonnaise, and some people don't. The vinegar and tabasco bring out the flavors a little bit. These are optional, but I think they make a big difference.

Grocery List and Menu for this Week

This week our menu is going to have a couple of soups and salads on it. The autumn weather is a perfect time for great stews and soups, and my wife has requested that I make, what she considers to be, the best chicken salad there is. I am also making my favorite sandwich and salad combination. It is a must try. So here is the menu:

Bleu Cheese Chicken Salad
Red Beans & Rice
Butternut Squash Soup
Gruyere Grilled Cheese Sandwiches on a bed of Mesculun Greens with Humboldt Fog
Southwest Chicken Soup


Red beans (or kidney beans if you cannot find red beans)
2 lbs. of chicken breasts
4 oz. of bleu cheese
Mayonnaise (do not get light, get real mayonnaise)
walnuts (2 oz.)
42 oz. of chicken broth
32 oz. chicken stock
chives
Gruyere 6 oz.
Humboldt Fog cheese (probably only available at nice grocery stores like Whole Foods, but totally worth it) small amount 3 ounces maybe
Mesculun Greens (if you cannot find, then spring mix will do)
8 oz. of Cheddar (not shredded, shred your own)
Can of Black Beans
Can of Diced Tomatoes
Can of Corn
celery 3 stalks
1 green pepper
3 white onions
1 bunch of grapes
1 butternut squash
1 carrot
1 Avocado
1 bunch of cilantro

Chicken and White Bean Chili

This one you may laugh at me a little. I stumbled across this recipe as I was on the seasonings aisle, and I saw this packet of seasoning that caught my eye. It was seasoning for Chicken and White Bean Chili. So I took it home, tried it, and loved it. It is extremely healthy. The recipe on the package tells you to cook your chicken breasts in oil. I prefer to bake mine in the oven. SO here we go.

Prep Time: 35 minutes Servings: 4

1 lb. Chicken Breasts $4.00
One can of Great Northern Beans or Navy Beans $1.00
McCormick's White Bean Chili Seasoning package $1.50

Total: $6.50 Cost per serving $1.63

This recipe would also go well with some sauteed red peppers for a little more interesting meal, but it is not necessary.

Bake your chicken in the oven for 30 minutes at 350F. For this dish, I simply season my chicken with salt and pepper. Remove from the oven and dice the chicken. Place in a pot with the beans (do not strain), the seasoning, and water, and bring to a boil. Once it is heated, it is ready to eat. This is about as easy as it gets.

Zing Zang Bloody Mary Vegetable Soup

Zing Zang is my favorite Bloody Mary mix. In fact, unless it is a homemade mix, I will not accept anything else from any restaurant. So when I had a bottle of it leftover from a party, and I needed to get rid of it, I thought about cooking with it and found this great recipe on their website. This is cooking at its simplest. This recipe makes A LOT. I froze half of it, and will bring it out of the freezer in a few weeks for another great dinner. Enjoy!

Prep Time:
30 minutes Servings: 8

1 medium onion, chopped $.80
3 stalks celery, chopped $.30
3 carrots, chopped $.25
1 small yellow squash, chopped $.45
1 small zucchini, chopped $.45
3 potatoes, peeled and chopped $1.00
1 16 ounce can chopped tomatoes $1.00
1 32 ounce bottle Zing Zang Bloody Mary Mix $5.00
8 cups beef broth $2.50

Total Cost $11.75 Cost per Serving $1.47

Combine all ingredients in stock pot. Bring to a boil; reduce heat, cover and simmer until vegetables are tender.

The Most Important Tool You Can Have In Your Kitchen

Kitchen cookware is a multi-billion dollar industry. Willams-Sonoma, Viking and other cookware providers try to sell people on a lot of must-have items. Most of these items would never find their way into a commercial kitchen, but there is one item that is in almost every commercial kitchen, and it is something I highly suggest everyone have in order to save themselves time and money.
The accessory I am talking about is a food processor. A food processor has a very complex-sounding name, but what it does is simple. It’s like a blender, but it has many more uses than a blender. You can purchase a food processor from a number of places, and there are a lot to choose from. I have a Cuisinart, and though I don’t necessarily think you must get a Cusinart, you should get one from a reputable, well-known company such as KitchenAid, Waring or Robot Coupe. All of them should be up for the task. I do suggest that you get at least an 8-quart or larger. Most of the smaller ones are too small to do anything effectively. An 8-quart processor is big enough to make a lot of things easier, and you are guaranteed to be getting a processor with a large motor.
I know a lot of people who have received food processors as wedding gifts and shoved them in a cabinet, never to be used. I say to those people, “Get out your food processor!” Once you take a look at all the cool things it is capable of, you will leave it on your countertop to use daily.
So what can a food processor do?
A food processor can slice, chop, mix, and blend anything. Food processors come with loads of attachments to do everything from mixing dough for homemade bread to juicing citrus. They can make homemade dressings, dips, and sauces a breeze. Having to finely chop things like garlic and herbs is no fun. I simply throw whole cloves in the processor and turn it on. Making homemade salsa is a breeze. A food processor can shred a block of cheese in three seconds. Never having to buy shredded cheese is a beautiful thing. You don’t have to worry about consuming the anti-caking preservatives, and you never have to wear out your hands shredding cheese again. I also make my own peanut butter- nothing but peanuts.
Good, fresh, simple ingredients are the key to great food, and food processors help you stay away from fillers, additives and preservatives. Buying a bunch of cilantro for seventy-cents and running it through the processor is much cheaper, better tasting, and better for you, than purchasing a tube of pre-chopped cilantro that is full of preservatives and oil.
I suggest everyone get a food processor for their kitchen. I find it as important as a stovetop.

Italian Sausage Stuffed Tomatoes

Tonight's featured dish is a fun dish to make, and the completed product seems a lot more difficult and impressive than the effort that goes into it. Your diners will be impressed and consider you a culinary genius with this one.

Prep Time 35 minutes Servings 3 to 4 (depending on if your diners can eat one or two tomatoes)

Ingredients:
1lb. of Italian Sausage (you can get links and cut them out of the casing) $4.00
4 oz. white mushrooms $1.00
4 oz. baby portabellas $1.00
6 to 8 large tomatoes (Using Heirloom tomatoes is the best. Here in Memphis, when they are in season, I use Ripley tomatoes) $5.00
8 oz. bread crumbs $1.00
8 tbsp EVOO $1.00
one small white onion $.70
2 garlic cloves $.10
salt and pepper $.10
1 tsp. oregano $.25
4 oz. Asiago Cheese $2.00

Total Cost $16.15 Cost per serving $4.04

In a heated skillet, add the Italian sausage, onion and garlic (both of which should be chopped). Break-up the sausage and sautee until brown. Halfway through, add the mushrooms. Once the sausage is browned and cooked through and through, set the mixture aside to cool.

Pit the tomatoes by cutting a circle out of the top of each tomato and scooping out the seeds and pulp inside. Drizzle EVOO in all the pitted tomatoes and season with salt and pepper.

Place the sausage, pepper and onion mixture in a mixing bowl and add the bread crumbs and oregano. Salt and pepper to taste. The mixture should start to combine and look like stuffing. If the mixture does not smooth but separates and crumbles, add a little water. Fill each tomato with stuffing and place in a oven-safe pan or dish. Bake at 350F in the oven for 10 minutes. Remove from the oven and place GRATED asiago cheese on top of each and return to oven for 5 more minutes, or until cheese is melted. Serve Hot.

RESTAURANT REVIEW- Tsunami

A cornerstone of the Cooper-Young District, Tsunami (928 South Cooper Street, www.tsunamimemphis.com) has established itself as one of the most unique dining experiences in Memphis. Founder, owner, and head chef Ben Smith has devoted himself to captivating diners with his talents for many years, and so when it was my wife’s birthday, Tsunami was the place we chose for her special night.
The first thing you should know about Tsunami is that it is a lively place. Driving past it on any given night, the window tables are full of diners, and the tables themselves are packed with wine glasses and dishes. Walking into the restaurant can be quite intimidating, as your first step is basically into the bar where guests are boisterous and greet you even before the hostess can. On this night, a Saturday, the place was packed and the dining room was loud, which takes a lot for me to say because no place is usually too loud for my likings.
The décor of Tsunami is impressive. Every decoration supports the theme of the restaurant, which is Pacific Rim cuisine, and no detail is left spared. Our table was a small, cozy table by a wall towards the back of the restaurant. If you make reservations, (as I had but did not know) I would suggest that you request a window table. The tables face Cooper which can be very fun people-watching.
Our server was very sweet and capable. She was accommodating, even adjusting the thermostat for my wife, but her service was not what I would consider professional, as she used casual and lax comments with us, such as, “That’s awesome,” but she did a great job overall.
The wine list is in-depth, with many choices, but nothing too far off the beaten path. Tsunami does offer a nice selection of splits, which is great because my wife drinks white, and I usually drink red, so we both got our own half-bottle.
For appetizers, we were going to have Shrimp and Tasmanian Sweet Crab Ceviche and Chilled Avocado Soup with Pico de Gallo, but we were told by our server that they were out of both items. Instead, we ordered the Sake Steamed Mussels in Thai Red Curry Sauce and the Crispy Calamari with Chipotle Aioli.
The calamari was fresh and well prepared. No risks were taken in this dish, just like fried calamari anywhere else, but the quality of it was apparent. And the portion was enormous. They could actually cut the portion in half and it would still be a lot of food. The mussels were forgettable. The mussels themselves were tough, and the sauce had no flavor. I usually relish in a big bowl of steamed mussels, wanting to sop up every bit of broth with bread, but not this sauce. It was bland and tasteless.
For dinner, my wife ordered the Spice Crusted Tuna on Cucumber Salad with Wasabi Vinaigrette, and I, though knowing I should have thought better of ordering a steak at a restaurant known for great seafood and fish, ordered the Marinated Grilled Ribeye with cornmeal crusted onion rings. The server supported the choice, telling me it was probably her favorite thing on the menu. I am a strong proponent that any chef must be proud of each and every item on his menu and would not prepare anything sub-par, just to provide a red-meat option for his guests. But my ribeye was anything but good. The one positive was that it was cooked to temperature, but that was the only positive. The marinade tasted like a fish rub, and it was served with mashed potatoes and sautéed vegetables. My plate looked more like something from Piccadilly than a fine restaurant. Even the plate itself was bland. They serve all of their other dishes on exciting and interesting porcelain saucers that shape the dish, but my steak was brought out on a nine-inch round white plate. It was disappointing. I enjoyed my mashed potatoes more than the meat. The tuna, on the other hand, was phenomenal. It was cooked perfectly to my wife’s specifications (rare), and the crust was the perfect thickness and crispness. The fish melted in your mouth, and the cucumber salad was a perfect match. The dish is highly recommended, and when I return to Tsunami, I will be ordering that and not red meat.
In the scheme of restaurants, Tsunami is a good restaurant, but another visit would have to convince me that it is a great restaurant. The establishment has a solid following, and it is beloved by most diners in Memphis, but with a check that totaled over $150, I can think of other local restaurants where I would rather spend my next special occasion.

2.5 out of 5 stars
Category of Fine Dining (Level 4)

Wild Mushroom Risotto

Tonight, we are having wild mushroom risotto. Risotto is one of those fabulous, yet simple dishes. You can make risotto with just about anything in it, and it is bound to be good.

Prep Time: 25 minutes Servings: 4
1 cup Arborio rice $2.00
4 tbsp. EVOO $.50
4 ounces of Crimini Mushrooms $1.00
4 oz. of White Mushrooms $1.00
4 oz. Baby Portabella Mushrooms $1.00
1 small white onion $.30
2 cloves of garlic $.25
salt and pepper $.10
Thyme (fresh or dried) $.30
3 oz. Dry Sherry $.50
32 oz. Vegetable or Chicken stock (you will find it near the broth) $2.00
4 oz. Asiago Cheese $2.00

Total Cost $10.95 Cost per Serving: $2.75

If you can manage to do these steps at the together then you can save yourself some time, but if you don't feel confident then do one then the other.

The Mushrooms:
You can use all different types of mushrooms for this dish. It depends on what is available to you. I simply purchased the CHEAPEST options. HA! Why not? Heat 2 tbsps of EVOO in a pan. Add a the white onion and garlic which should be well chopped. Sautee until the onion is soft. Add in your mushrooms and sautee. Add in two ounces of water. I like this step, because it makes a broth out of the ingredients in the bottom of the pan, and it softens the mushrooms, too. Let them soften, but they should be a bit firm because we are going to add them to our risotto and cook a little longer. Maybe sautee them for five minutes. Add the thyme in the last minute. Remove from heat and set aside.

The Rice:
Cooking risotto is a blast. It is rice that you cook in stock, but you have to add the stock in stages, so you must stay near the stove and watch your rice. Use a pot and heat 2 tbsp of EVOO. Add the rice and sautee for maybe two minutes, making sure all the rice is coated with oil. Add the sherry. The rice will soak up the wine. Once it does, you can start a clock. Cooking the rice will take almost exactly 20 minutes. Reduce to medium heat and add 4 ounces of stock and stir into the rice. The rice will absorb the stock in a couple of minutes. Once it does, add four more ounces of stock and stir in. Continue this for twenty minutes, and make the stock last the entire twenty minutes. What you will find is that the rice actually gets "creamy" as it cooks. Once twenty minutes is up, drop in your pan of wild mushrooms, broth and all, and cook with the rice for maybe three more minutes. Salt and pepper to taste, and remove from heat.

Shred the asiago cheese and place on top of each dish.

My Rule About the Grocery Store

I was in a discussion with a friend of mine last night about cooking. I was trying to explain to him how truly easy it can be. He replied by saying that he does cook. And that he cooks frozen dinners all the time. I had to stop him. “That is not cooking.”
He was somewhat shocked. “You don’t eat frozen dinners?”
“Never.”
He pondered this for a second, and understanding my background with food he asked, “But if you did eat them, what brand would you buy?"
I had to explain to him my rule of the grocery store: STAY TO THE PERIMETER.
Everything you should be eating is on the edge of the store. Produce, bakery items, meats, cheeses, seafood and fish, dairy, and deli food, is always around the edges of the store. Anytime you find yourself strolling the aisles, be careful!
There are things that I have to go to the aisles for: cereal, crackers, condiments, and rice. But I never end my trip with a grocery basket full of packaging. A healthy grocery cart, has no bright colors and boxes with fireworks and celebrations on them. Healthy grocery carts are filled with naturally occurring items.
I explained to my friend, “There is a time and place for everything.” Sometimes I may want some Easy-Cheese (canned cheese spray). It reminds me of camping as a kid, a comfort food if you will, but it is not a regularly occurring item in my pantry. The same should go for frozen dinners.
Food-like substances are full of additives and preservatives. There are tons of things in them that you shouldn’t eat.
“But why do they taste so good?” my friend asked.

Someone who was standing close-by, overhearing our discussion chimed in and explained, “Anything with the ingredient, ‘Natural Flavoring’ is full of chemicals. ‘Natural Flavoring’ is the legal way to get around listing all the chemical compounds they spray the food with to make it ‘taste’ like something.” That simply makes me sick.
I also explained to my friend that his palate was being destroyed by these Franken-foods.
He has an affinity for Taco Bell, and I explained to him that their “beef” is made from crushed chicken bones doused in taco seasoning. CHICKEN BONES!!! There is no trace of cow in their beef. If you eat stuff like that, you can lose your ability to taste what is real, fresh and good. But keeping yourself from the packaging and buying real food is the start.
I started to question my friend’s awareness of his body. How could he eat that stuff without feeling sick? I told him, “My brother is a professional chef and restaurateur himself, and he told me once, ‘Diarrhea is not natural. If you eat something or somewhere and you have diarrhea, then there was something wrong with the handling of the food, or the food itself.’” To me that is the most poignant and simple observation you can make about food quality. If it makes you ill, there is something very wrong with it.
My friend explained that he did cook some, but most of the time it tasted terrible.
I had to tell him that food is supposed to taste GOOD. EVERYTIME. NO EXCEPTIONS. If your meal turns out terrible, there is something wrong with the recipe, or with the preparation. But the more you get comfortable with handling and preparing food, the more you understand what flavors can combine to make an outstanding dish.
In summary, frozen dinners are not viable meals. Don’t rely on them for sustenance because you won’t get it. Nutrients are found in the vegetable and meat naturally. The more it is cooked, chopped, processed, dehydrated, frozen and reheated, there is nothing left to satisfy your body. Never accept a frozen meal.

Croque Madame

Tonight, we are having the delicious French sandwiches, Croque Madame. These are very simple, yet elegant.

Prep Time: Ten Minutes Makes two servings

8 oz. of sliced deli ham (not Oscar Mayer) $3.50
4 oz. Gruyere $3.00
4 slices of bread $1.00
2 eggs $.25

Total Cost: $7.75 Cost per serving $3.87

Slice the Gruyere and place it on the ham which should be on one slice of bread. So you have just made an open-faced Ham and Cheese Sandwich. Set your oven to Broil and place the open-faced sandwiches on an ungreased pan in the oven. Let the cheese melt on the ham, and toast the other side of the bread. Your uncovered slice of bread may toast faster than the cheese melts, so you may have to pull out exposed bread before the cheese melts onto the ham on your other slice of bread. While that is in the oven, fry two eggs. Be sure to coat your pan with a little butter or cooking spray.

Pull your sandwiches out of the oven, put them together and place one egg on both sandwiches. Bon Apetit! Some other recipes will call for beschamel to be added, but I find that a time-consuming expense.

Menu for this Week and Grocery List

The Menu this week will have some cold weather fare, seeing as the temperature is dropping here in Memphis, and some of my personal favorites. If you are not familiar with Croque Madames, they are very popular French sandwiches. They are basically an upscale, toasted ham and cheese sandwich with a lightly fried egg on top. It is what we would call an Egg McMuffin. The bread you select for them should be fairly hearty, and the more bite it has (as opposed to being gummy, white bread) the better.

Bloody Mary Vegetable Stew
Wild Mushroom Risotto
Italian Sausage Stuffed Tomatoes
Chicken and White Bean Chili
Croque Madames

half a dozen eggs
Whole grain or Eight grain bread
1/2 lb. of Deli ham
Gruyere (you can use the parmesan if you would like for a less expensive twist)
16 oz. can chopped tomatoes
32 ounce bottle of Zing Zang
64 oz. of beef broth
32 oz. Vegetable Stock
Italian Sausage
Bread Crumbs
8 ounces of Parmesan cheese (a wedge, not the grated, powdery stuff)
1.5 lb. Chicken Breasts
White Beans (either Navy Beans or Great Northern Beans are perfect)
Chicken and White Bean Chili seasoning packet
6 large Tomatoes
Arborio Rice
White Mushrooms x 2
1/4 lb. of crimini or shittake mushrooms
Baby Portabella Mushrooms
2 medium white onion
one celery stalk bunch
3 large carrots
1 small yellow squash
1 small zucchini
3 potatoes

Above menu and list assumes that you have certain staples:
salt and pepper
Olive Oil
Butter
Milk

Pasta Ashley (My wife's favorite)- Linguini in a shallot sherry sauce

I know, I know. This pasta has a lot of butter. So sue me! But it's dang good. I have substituted chicken stock for the butter, but it tastes no where near as good. So here I have provided the original recipe. Enjoy!

Servings: Two Prep time: 15 minutes

6 ounces of linguini pasta (whole wheat is good, too) $1.25
1 stick of butter $.75
1 large shallot $.50
3 ounces of dry sherry $.50
broccoli (you can also use snap peas, carrots, or a mixture of vegetables, but broccoli is my wife's fav) $2.00


Total: $5.00 Cost per serving $2.50

Boil the noodles until ready. While cooking the pasta, melt the butter in a pan without burning it. Once hot, drop in the shallots which should be finely chopped. Reduce heat on the shallots and sautee until they are almost transparent. Add in the sherry and reduce the sauce by half. Add salt and pepper. The sauce should thicken some, but still remain thin. Drop in the broccoli and reduce the sauce to a simmer. Once the pasta is done cooking, drain the noodles and toss with the sauce and veg. You can sprinkle each serving with parmesan cheese, and adding tofu or chicken to this dish is great, too.

Greek Cucumber Salad

An easy salad that tastes great!

Makes two servings. Prep time 10 minutes

1 cucumber $.75
4 Roma Tomatoes $1.00
Can of Medium Pitted Black Olives $1.00
one small red onion $.20
4 ounces of Feta cheese $1.50
one ounce EVOO $.25
two ounces Balsamic Vinegar $.60
1 tbsp. Cavender's Greek Seasoning $.20
salt and pepper to flavor $.10

Total Cost $5.60 Cost per serving $2.80


Cut cucumber into wheels. Slice tomatoes into wheels (and in half from there if you would like). Drain the juice from the black olives. Dice the red onion. Chop up and crumble the Feta cheese. And mix all the ingredients above into a large bowl. Let marinate for fifteen minutes and serve.

I told you it was easy!

My Restaurant Review Guidelines

I will be starting some restaurant reviews and to qualify and quantify my reviews, I am dividing the restaurants into categories. The categories I will use, will be the same standards set by the AAA and their Diamond Rating system, and they are as follows:

One Diamond [basic; good food]
A one diamond restaurant must meet basic requirements pertaining to management, cleanliness and overall quality. The primary focus is on providing wholesome, straightforward and familiar food at an economical price. Generally, the menu selection is limited to a restaurant’s specialty, such as hamburgers, fried chicken, pizza or tacos. Service is limited, in many instances self service, and the surroundings are often utilitarian.

Two Diamond [relaxed family fare]
A two diamond restaurant displays noticeable enhancements to food presentation, such as the use of common garnishes in combination with the dishware. Typically, the menu offers a wide selection featuring familiar favorites or home-style foods often cooked to order and reasonably priced. The service, while often limited, is plain-speaking and relaxed. The surroundings, while limited in scope, typically reflect a clear theme. All elements combine to provide a familiar, often family-oriented experience.

Three Diamond [entry-level fine dining]
A three diamond restaurant often employs a professional chef and a supporting staff of highly-trained cooks. The menu is skillfully prepared and often reflects interpretations of the latest trends or a mastering of traditional cuisine. Typically, there are expanded offerings of beverages in complement to the menu, such as international/regional wines, specialty beers, cocktails and soft drinks. A professional dining room manager leads a complement of efficient service staff. The service reflects some degree of refinement, such as reservations accepted, personal assistance or the ability to adapt to the guest’s specific needs. The décor reflects the use of well-coordinated design mediums that provide a distinct theme and good comfort. Restaurants at this level convey an entry into fine dining and are often positioned as an adult-oriented experience.

Four Diamond [fine dining]
A four diamond restaurant is geared to individuals in search of a distinctive fine-dining experience. Often orchestrated by an executive chef and an accomplished staff, menus reflect a high degree of creativity and complexity, using imaginative presentations to enhance high quality, market-fresh ingredients. The equally proficient service staff demonstrates a strong desire to meet or exceed guest expectations. A wine steward is typically available to provide menu-specific knowledge on wine selection. The ambiance is highly refined, comfortable and well-coordinated, incorporating quality materials and a variety of upscale design enhancements to give a first-class impression. The overall dining experience is typically expensive.

Five Diamond [world-class dining]
A five diamond restaurant is renowned and consistently provides a world-class experience. This is "haute cuisine" at its best. Menus are cutting edge, using only the finest ingredients available. Food is prepared in a manner that is highly imaginative and unique. The combination of technique and ingredients is extraordinary, reflecting the impeccable artistry and awareness of highly-acclaimed chefs. A maître d’ leads an expert service staff that exceeds guest expectations by attending to every detail in an effortless and unobtrusive manner.

Each reviewed restaurant will be classified into one of these categories and given stars (on a five star scale) based on how that restaurant measures up to the standards of each categories.

I hope you enjoy the reviews, and the first will come out this week.

Chicken Quesadillas with Homemade Guacamole

Tonight we are having Chicken Quesadillas. I know it's October, and that doesn't really spell Mexican food, but with homemade guacamole, it is hard to resist these healthy, little items. And you will find out that Mexican food is one style of food that you will be hard-pressed to do cheaper at home than you can dine out. And if you have a place as good as La Guadalapana near you, as we do here in Memphis, then I would minimize your Mexican cooking to only specific dishes. I find quesadaillas something I prefer to do at home.

Cook Time 30 minutes

1 lb. of chicken breasts $4.00
2 Avocados $2.50
1 Tomato $.45
1 white onion $.30
1 bunch of cilantro $.80
2 limes $.66
1 clove of garlic $.05
salt and pepper $.10
Ground Cumin $.50
4 oz. shredded cheddar cheese $1.50
4 Whole wheat or Flour Tortillas $1.50

Total: $12.36 or $3.09 a serving

Chicken Quesadillas:
Season your chicken with salt and pepper and cumin. Bake in the oven at 350 F for 30 minutes. If you want to save time and you know you will be using chicken in a lot of dishes in the week to come, bake all of your chicken at once. I will bake off five to six breasts, all with different seasonings depending on what I am using them for, and then slice them and refrigerate them until I need them. Once your breasts are finished baking, slice them into thin slivers for use in the quesadillas. You want them pretty thin so they fit inside the tortilla.

Dice a tomato.

Heat a pan over the stove top until it gets very hot. Make sure the pan is very clean and very dry. No oil. Place a tortilla in the pan and quickly fill with chicken, shredded cheese and diced tomatoes. Fold the quesadilla closed, and watch it closely. The tortilla will brown on the bottom in maybe three minutes. Adjust the heat if you need to. Once the underside is brown, flip the quesadilla and brown on the other side. The quesadilla is done when the cheese melts. Remove from the pan, and slice into 4 sections. Serve with homemade guacamole.

Homemade Guacamole:
This is much easier to prepare with a food processor. The base for any good salsa or guacamole is simple. This recipe will make enough for two or three batches of guacamole or salsa.

One bunch of cilantro
Juice from 2 limes
1 white onion chopped fine
1 garlic clove
Plenty of salt
Pepper
(optional) half or a whole jalapeno (depending on how hot you like it. Fresh jalapenos are HOT. They aren't like those jarred deals. Be careful handling fresh jalapenos as the oil from them stays on your fingers even after you wash them.

You must chop all of this very fine. If you run it through a food processor, slice it till it looks almost like pesto. Very fine. Add salt to bring out all the flavors. Salt and lime juice make an amazing flavor!

This is the base for my salsa and guacamole. From here to make salsa add three or four tomatoes and more salt. Chop the tomatoes to whatever consistency you prefer. If you like chunky salsa, leave them larger. If you like thin salsa, chop them up really well. And remember, if you don't get a strong kick of flavors, add more salt. Most fresh vegetables don't have much sodium, so you will have to add it to bring out the flavors. And don't worry, it is very hard to over-salt salsa and guacamole.

To make guacamole, add one tomato to the base and two avocados. Once again, mix, mash and chop to desired consistency.

This will be the freshest, best-tasting salsa and guacamole you have ever tasted. You will never buy another store brand ever again. And look at the ingredient list and compare it to what you might buy at the store. There is nothing in your salsa and guacamole that you cannot pronounce.

Broiled Tilapia with mixed vegetable and brown rice

This is a really easy meal to make, and it is really good for you, too. Tilapia is a great fish that is inexpensive and easy to find. I used Emeril's Original Essence on my Tilapia fillets with a little salt and pepper, but you can use anything dry you can think of.

Prep Time: 20 minutes (or however long it takes to cook rice)

For TWO PEOPLE
2 Tilapia Fillets $6
1 zucchini $.50
1 squash $.50
8 oz. of brown rice $.85
16 oz. of water $.00
1 tbsp. butter $.20
1 tbsp. EVOO $.25
parsley $.10
thyme $.10
salt and pepper $.05
Dry seasoning for tilapia $.10

Total: $8.65 or $4.33 a serving


Preheat your oven to BROIL. Drizzle EVOO in a oven-safe pan or dish. Place the tilapia fillets in the pan and drizzle a bit of EVOO on them and coat with your seasoning. Once your oven is preheated, you will broil the tilapia 5 minutes on one side. Take the pan out. Flip the fillet. Coat the other side with EVOO and seasoning and return to the oven with the newly seasoned half facing up. Broil for five minutes and it's done.

To sautee fresh veg is easy. Slice your squash and zucchini into wheels, and you can get as small as you'd like or keep them in cirlces. Heat 2 tbsp of EVOO in a pan. Once it is warm, drop in the zucchini and squash. Season with salt, pepper, and thyme. Toss veg around for approx. 5 minutes. You want them to be slightly soft, but with a bit of crunch still. Don't cook them into transparent mush.

And brown rice is easy. 2 to 1 water to rice. So boil two cups of water. Drop in the rice and let cook over medium heat for approx. 20 minutes. The rice is done cooking when there is no water left in the pot and the rice is tender. The New Orleans way to cook rice is to put the rice into the boiling water, and to not disturb it at all through the cooking process. This will cause a lot of rice to stick to your pan, and clean up will be lengthy, but it ensures well cooked rice.
When your brown rice is done you can drop in a tbsp. of butter and stir in some salt and pepper and parsley. Easy.

Menu for This Week with Grocery List

This week's menu will include the following:

Broiled Tilapia with sauteed fresh vegetables and brown rice
Chicken Quesadillas
Mediterranean Pita Pizzas
Greek Cucumber Salad
Pasta Ashley (My wife's favorite)- linguini in a shallot sherry sauce

Grocery list: For TWO PEOPLE

1 lb. Chicken Breast
2 Tilapia fillets
1 zucchini
1 squash
2 Avocados
2 Tomatoes
Tortillas (Flour or whole wheat)
8oz. Cheddar Cheese (I suggest not buying shredded. Shredded has preservatives and things to keep the cheese from sticking together in the bag. I think its gross. But I also have a food processor that makes shredding cheese really easy).
Pita bread
Hummus ( we can make our own, but to be quick you can pick some up)
Kalamata Olives (not many, maybe 2 ounces)
2 cucumbers
2 roma tomatoes
1 red onion
Linguini
1 shallot
Cavender's Greek Seasoning
CHEAP Dry Sherry ($4 at a liquor store)

Staples: Make sure you have these available
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Salt & Pepper
Thyme (does not have to be fresh)
Balsamic Vinegar
Butter

Beer Lovers Notice: Pilsner Urquell on Tap

For all you beer lovers out there, or all of you who may be interested in trying something new, The Beauty Shop Restaurant (966 South Cooper) here in Memphis, now has Pilsner Urquell on tap. For those of you not familiar, Pilsner Urquell is the official beer of the Czech Republic. And I mean that. On a recent trip to Prague, we found Pilsner Urquell on every corner. The beer is so beloved by its countrymen, that the brewery owns and sponsors bars around the city and country. There are three main beers in Prague, Pilsner Urquell, Staropramen, and Budweiser Budvar (the original Budweiser). All of these beers are extremely popular and Czechs do find delight in arguing the finer points of which makes each one better than the other, but it is Pilsner Urquell that wins out in popularity as it is the first pilsner beer ever made. And they like it so much, it is cheaper to buy than water. You can get a quart of beer at a local bar for 70 cents US. It is almost a Czech-right to enjoy Pilsner Urquell.
The beer itself is a golden color and goes down smooth and crisp with a vibrant flavor. I wouldn't suggest picking up a 6-pack at your local grocer as I find these to be skunky, but finding a barroom that has this excellent beer on tap is a treasure as a keg can keep the brew more intact and fresher for a taste more similar to the original article found in the streets of Prague. And not many distributors offer Pilsner Urquell, and not many restauranteurs are willing to take the risk of offering it. Thank you, Karen for doing so!
And having a pint at The Beauty Shop is ironically similar to a lot of the "clubs" and bars you will find in Prague. The Beauty Shop's eclectic 1960's stylings are similar to Eastern European modern design which can be very vintage and hang on the verge of 2001: A Space Odyssey.
I highly recommend and suggest that you drop by The Beauty Shop and have a pint of Pilsner Urquell. Take along a book about the artist, Mucha, and skim through it while you drink, and you may start feeling like you have travelled abroad without paying for an airline fare.

Restaurants According to Ben

So I guess I should just come out and say it. “I love restaurants!” There it is. So there is no confusion. So no one on down the road can say, “You must hate dining out.” Absolutely not. In fact, the opposite is true. I do love restaurants. I enjoy them so much, I made it my livelihood for a number of years. I enjoy entertaining people. I enjoy crowds. I enjoy great tasting cuisine, prepared with impeccable ingredients, and served with enthusiasm. I love restaurants so much, that I admire great ones. I love restaurants and would dine out each night of the week, if I didn’t understand that not every restaurant is value, and that some of them use techniques to increase their margins, which directly affect the experience of dining out.
So dining out becomes an evaluation for me. And that is why I was paid to do just that, evaluate restaurants. Sitting at a table in a restaurant, I can gauge in just a few seconds how well run and well-maintained the establishment is. Spotted flatware shows the utensils weren’t wiped dry but left to “drip-dry,” a server involved in mindless chatter to an employee about that evening’s events after they are off work, diners at another table with empty glasses, and uncleared tables throughout the dining room with dirty dishes from past guests. These are obvious, but clear examples of details that calculate the worth of the experience because every restaurateur encounters thousands of decisions each day that will affect his guests’ experience.
Let’s role play… and not like that.
You are a restaurateur. You have three main expenses: food and beverage, labor, and operating expenses. Your operating expenses, such as utilities and rent, do not change that much. In the winter they may go up from running the heat, but in the summer they could also rise from running the air conditioning. The bottom line is that unless your landlord hikes up your lease, or someone leaves the A/C on 60 overnight, your operating expenses should remain nearly the same. Your labor cost should dabble at 20% and your food cost should be concrete at 30%, some places can get down to 25%, and Chinese and Mexican restaurants can boast 15-20% food costs.
But to maintain these labor and food costs, you have decisions. Jumbo Lump Crabmeat goes up $2/lb. Do you continue to buy it for your crab cakes, or do you drop to lump instead? What would your guests prefer? It’s Friday night, you have a new line cook working, should you bring in an extra guy to back him up? This will cost you more on your labor, but what if the newbie can’t get food out in time? What if tickets run slow? How will that affect your guests? It is 8 o’clock on a Tuesday, your servers beg you to cut someone, leaving you with less staff on the floor, but leaving your servers with an opportunity to make more money? What do you do? What if 12 people come in all at once, and your servers get weeded? What if you say no, and your servers make no money because it is slow? Finding good staff is hard, and if they aren’t making good money, they won’t stay long.
These dilemmas occur daily for a restaurant owner. But they must always be mindful of the guest experience. But how do I know whether or not the place I have just sat down at, with the spotted utensils, and the thirsty diners at table 23, will provide me with a good guest experience? I don’t. And that is why I stopped dining out so much, and I started dining in.
I realized that I could apply the insights from running a commercial kitchen, such as, creating specials to burn-out old product, to never waste anything, and to create menus with overlapping ingredients to keep overhead down and upkeep simple, to my own kitchen at home and save me and my family a bundle of money while maintaining a enlivened palate.
Let’s be frank. I already told you that most restaurants hover around a 25% food cost. So what does that mean for someone dining out? The bill you are paying is only 25% food. The other 75% is for the experience and the preparation. Service is not included in the U.S. That cost you another 15%-20% more. So 75% of each meal dining out is paying for your experience and the preparation of the meal. So each meal should be evaluated. How much value does it hold? Should you spend $8 on a sandwich from a deli? And how about take out, or to-go-orders. Restaurants love this. Why do you think the national chains have now gone out of there way to accommodate call-in orders to the point that they will rush the food out to your car? Think about it? They are selling you food at the same price as if you came in and dined in their restaurant. But you aren’t taking up a seat in their dining room. They don’t have to consider your guest experience as much as a table of four inside. It is a win-win for them. 75% of that pickup order is paying for the upkeep, maintenance and profit margin of the business. To-go orders are a waste of money. I never order them. Why would I want to pay the same price as someone getting full-service at a table, and have to take home a meal that steams itself gooey inside a styrofoam container to come to my home, where I have to use my condiments, my silverware, and I have to clean it up afterwards? That is not a good guest experience.
But let me backup by saying, some places are worth it. My favorite sandwich shop in Memphis, called Fino’s, makes a sandwich that I would never try to recreate or duplicate myself. The preparation they go through is perfect. If I want that sandwich, then I am going to get it from then. And that is what a good guest experience is all about. My lessons through being a restaurateur have taught me, though, to keep those instances for certain nights, and to not rely heavily on dining out for your everyday meals. By doing so, you are missing out on the ability to save yourself money and eat healthier than picking up dinner somewhere every night of the week.

So, Ben, you have convinced me that dining out is not practical, what am I supposed to do now?

Well, as you will discover, I am not a professional chef. I do not get my recipes from the Food Network because you will slit your wrist trying to track down an organic mushroom farm to pick your own wild mushrooms for a risotto or some other obscure item that they try to impress you with. More than a chef, I am a home economist. You’ve heard of that, right? HomeEc. We didn’t have to study that when I was in school, and I think that is both good and bad. I think it has left us somewhat deprived and ignorant of basic cooking instincts, which are truly instincts. You basically know when you are following a recipe if or when something smells wrong, looks wrong, or worse… taste wrong.
By not being a chef, nor wanting to be a chef (I have worked with enough to know how hard it can be), I have more of a simplified approach to cooking. None of my recipes are complicated, they aren’t even challenging, but what they are is good, fresh, inexpensive ingredients, brought together in a timely fashion.
Take this story for example. As I was consulting a chef once, I noticed there was frozen broccoli in her freezer. I asked her what it was for, and she said it was for broccoli cheese soup. I challenged her to make her finest broccoli cheese soup, and we would have a competition the following day to see whose tasted better. I left the restaurant and purchased fresh broccoli from a local produce market. As I was making my soup that night, I called the chef and said, “Don’t forget to cost out your soup.”
She couldn’t believe it. “But I put fine European cheese in it!”
“Exactly. We must know the cost.”
The ingredients for my soup were: broccoli, cheddar cheese, flour, milk, butter, cream, and salt and pepper. As simple as you can get.
The next day, what would you know, the wait staff unanimously chose my golden rue full of fresh, broccoli florettes to her paltry, bland, thin dish. The cost of my soup was fifty-eight cents a portion, hers was $2.34.
“How can we sell that?” I asked her.
“We can’t,” she said.
The point was made.

A very simple, quick, cost-effective approach is what we will take in our klitchens because that is what successful restaurants do in theirs.

Chicken Noodle Soup

It has been raining all day here in Memphis. And the temperature is dropping. The weather outside is so bad that not a single one of my four dogs has asked to go outside all day. Not even since I woke up. Their bladders must be about to explode, but when I open the backdoor and coax them out, they just stare at me.

It's days like this that remind me of Chicken Noodle Soup. Because it's cold and rainy, not because of dog bladders. And that's what I have made for dinner tonight. Chicken Noodle is so easy, but people have stashed it away in some 1950's-Good-Housekeeping-Campbell's-Condensed-World War II-rationing-style mindset, that they forgot how good the original article can be. And easy! And cheap! Not cheaper than the Campbell's condensed stuff, but better tasting, and better for you for sure.

So here you go:

6 servings in thirty minutes

1 lb. of Chicken Breasts $4
2 large carrots $.70
1 bunch of celery $1.25
1 white onion $.60
2 garlic cloves $.05
Thyme $.10
Bay Leaf $.05
2 Tbsp. Olive oil $.50
Salt and Pepper $.10
32 oz. of Chicken Broth $1.75
8 ounces of egg noodles $1.00

Total Cost: $10.10 per serving $1.69

Bake the chicken for 30 minutes at 350 F after coating it with EVOO, thyme, and s&p. While baking the chicken, chop the celery, onion, carrot (peel it first of course) and garlic clove and drop it in a large stock pot with the EVOO which should be hot. Sautee the mixture without browning it. Maybe 6 minutes over medium heat, or until the vegetables soften, but aren't mush. Add the thyme, bay leaf and chicken broth, and bring to boil. Once to a boil, you can drop the heat to a LOW simmer. Once the chicken is finished baking, cut it into cubes and drop into the soup. If you are ready for service, turn up the heat on the soup, and drop in the egg noodles. These will be tender and ready in 4-5 minutes. And there you have it. HOMEMADE. Like you wish your mom had made!

And here is a tip! If you are planning on keeping some for leftovers for the next day, don't put all the egg noodles in at once. Scoop out your left overs and place them in a container to hold in the fridge. And when you heat that the next day, add your egg noodles then. The reason being is the egg noodles will continue to soak up all the broth in the soup while being kept in the fridge, and you will have something that resembles Chicken & Dumplings. Your egg noodles aren't reconstituted like Campbell's are. And that's a good thing!