mention...

it's always nice to get a mention in the local paper.  st. pete times food writer jim webster did a piece on the best of tampa bay and mentioned my fish and chips.  you can read the article here.  

publicity

as a chef, one of the most exciting things is getting noticed for the food you make.  i have been really lucky with the amount of positive feedback i've received while at the queens head.  

yesterday, a photographer from the St. Pete Times came out to do a quick shoot of my Fish and Chips.  here's a couple shots i took of the shoot.

i thought it was kind of cool that they brought a hand model for the session.  the pic is a possible cover shot for next week's weekender section in the Times.  either way, it's exciting to have my food get some free publicity...

lavender basil dumplings

this super frigid weather we're having lately has had me wanting something hearty and comforting.  so, i decided to make some dumplings.  i don't know if you've guessed by now, but i don't like doing the "traditional" kind of thing...  

this was my first shot at making dumplings, and i thought they turned out fairly decent.

what you'll need...

2 eggs

2 cups feta or ricotta cheese ( i used feta)

2 cups flour

zest of 1 lemon

1 tsp lavender

2 tbs chopped basil

salt and pepper to taste

in the kitchenaid mixer with paddle attachment, mix the eggs, cheese, basil and lavender.  then add the lemon zest and salt/pepper.  add flour slowly until just combined.  dump it out onto a cutting board and should look like this...

now, grab a piece of dough and shape it however you like..and however large you prefer.  i did about 2 oz portions in sort of egg-ish shapes...

now, get a pot of salted water.  bring to boil and drop in some dumplings.  let boil for about 10 minutes.  "they" say that when they float, they're done....  


you can pair your dumplings with whatever you like, but i chose to make a spicy tomato ragout.  here's the finished product.  it was pretty amazing.  the lavender really stood out.

i think i still need some practice on the dumplings, but overall, not bad.

sage cured salmon

wow.  it's been a while since i've done a post!  a huge apology to all my faithful readers...all 3 of you.


there are a lot of ways to save some money when it comes to a restaurant kitchen.  the biggest way is to do things yourself, as opposed to buying pre-made or pre-processed things.  not only can you save money, if done correctly, you'll end up with a better product.


a while ago i started curing my salmon for our brunch instead of buying the pre-smoked stuff.  it's super easy.


what you'll need...
2 cups sugar
2 cups kosher salt
1 side salmon, cleaned/skinned
1/4 lb fresh sage


first, you'll want to mix the sugar and salt together thoroughly.  then pull out a sheet of plastic wrap twice as long as your side of salmon.  spread half of the salt/sugar mix right in the middle like so...

then you'll want to lay out half of the sage, like so...

 then lay your side of salmon on top of that, and cover with remaining sage...

 cover that with the rest of your salt/sugar mixture and wrap tightly with plastic wrap...

throw that in your fridge and let cure for 24 hours.  you can let it go longer if you like a more jerky type texture...  when your 24 hours is up, unwrap, toss sage and salt/sugar out.  rinse with cold water and slice it thin.  great on some crackers or with scrambled eggs and toast.

stilton shortbread, and exciting new possibilities.

well, i know it's been awhile since i've posted...  with the holidays/work/life/lack of internet....  the blog kind of slipped through the cracks.  


last week i wanted to do an onion soup.  one of my all time favorite soups.  seriously.  ever.


i wanted to do something a bit different, but that still gave you all the flavors of a traditional onion soup.  i decided to do a stilton shortbread cracker to go with it.  here's the recipe.

stilton shortbread crackers

4 oz crumbled stilton –or any blue will do!
2 sticks butter, room temperature
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 tsp salt
1 tsp freshly ground black pepper
 

preheat oven to 350 degrees.

 cream the cheese and butter together in stand mixer (the good ol’ kitchenaid with paddle attachment.)  add flour, salt, and pepper. mix until it looks like this.

gather dough into ball. roll out dough to 1/4-inch thickness. transfer dough to a baking sheet. like so…

bake until golden brown, about 20 minutes…and you should have this!

next, just let it cool and you can either cut it into cool shapes, or just break it up.  either way, its delicious.  here's the stilton shortbread cracker in my onion soup.  i think i might have to make this again this week.  

now on to some exciting news...  i met with a gentleman yesterday who is interested in doing a new television show about a chef and cooking.  i can't really get into too many specifics, but he wants me to be a part of it. we will be shooting the demo for the show in the next 2-3 weeks, and then it's the waiting game... hoping that a network picks up the show.  

i. am. so. freaking. excited.

this could be really cool!  the potential is amazing.  

i'm trying to NOT get my hopes up too much, because for all i know, nothing will come of it...  BUT. if it does... this could mean huge, HUGE things for me.  and my family.  

anyway, keep your fingers crossed for me...  and keep eating!

happy new years!

this year has a lot of promise.  good things are heading my way.  happy new years to all of you!