Thursday, May 29, 2008

CMN Video: Pizza Throwing Championship

CMN Video: Pizza Throwing Championship

It's another video from the New York Pizza Show, where we see the championship round of the pizza throwing competition. These guys really know how to sling their pizza! Keep in mind that this is real dough, not the rubber disks I got to practice with. They are true masters at their art.

A production of The Culinary Media Network. www.culinarymedianetwork.com






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Wednesday, May 28, 2008

Recipe: Chilled Cucumber Mint Soup

The combination of cucumbers and yogurt is a classic Balkan and Middle Eastern pairing. Here, we make use of the creaminess and soothing coolness in a chilled summer soup which requires no cooking. Take it along in a chilled thermos for a picnic pick-me-up, or serve it as we do in frosted glasses with springs of mint as a garnish.

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CMN - RP145: Marsala Wine

ReMARKable Palate #145: Marsala Wine

Today's show is an audio soundseeing tour of Florio, the legendary producer of Marsala wine, in the town of Marsala, in the province of Trapani, on the far western coast of Sicily. Our guide Marcello tells us about the history of this historic winery, which has been in operation since 1833, where some of the casks still have 100 year old wine in them! Listen with earbuds, since I recorded this with binaural microphones, and you'll get the full stereo soundseeing experience.

ReMARKable Palate is a production of The Culinary Media Network. www.culinarymedianetwork.com

Theme Song: "Go Fish", by Big Money Grip, from the Podsafe Music Network.





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Monday, May 26, 2008

CMN - AYCE51: Clam Digging

All You Can Eat #51: Clam Digging

A trip to Salt Spring Island for clam digging with the author of a book about tides, and a visit to a seafood shop with the editor of a new cookbook about shellfish.



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Sunday, May 25, 2008

Gastronomic Meditations: Basilicum Tormentum

There is no way for me to say this without sounding like a complete maniac, so I’ll just come out with it: Nothing gets my blood flowing like basil. I don’t mean that it is pleasing to my palate (it is); or that it is my favorite ingredient (it is); but that I am utterly obsessed with its arresting fragrance.

As soon as the basil in my garden is ready for picking, I am out there like a wanton lover, inhaling its scent so hard that I become deprived of oxygen, and feel myself swaying in a dreamlike haze. After tearing up the leaves to sprinkle over a bowl of tomatoes, my fingers are perfumed for the rest of the day, and I can return to my basil daydreams with the mere wave of a hand.

I’m not sure I’ve experienced a lust quite like it — I simply cannot get enough. This year I’ve experimented with adding the torn leaves to my bath so I can smell its ethereal aroma in my hair; I even keep a few leaves on my desk so I can rejuvenate my senses during the workday, allowing the captivating scent of anise to coat my palate as I muddle through the tasks at hand. Perhaps some sort of twelve-step program is in order, because my greed is out of control. (read more)

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Saturday, May 24, 2008

CMN - CHIC126: Buffet and Graduation

CHIC Podcast #126: Buffet and Graduation

I am privileged to attend so many fun and exciting events in food and peoples lives. This last week I attended two really fun ones. First was the buffet put on by our advanced baking class for culinary students. As I talked about last week, Chef Amy Wolf and myself presided over 25 hard-working students. They put out a buffet I thought you would enjoy seeing. The CHIC graduation was also this last weekend. 200 graduates crossed the stage at the Downtown Marriott on Michigan Avenue. What an experience that was! I brought my camera to both events. Let me know where else you would like me to bring my camera. I can get into events that a lot of folks won’t ever see. I realize the quality is not perfect but I think you will have fun. It runs just over 8 minutes. Thanks for watching.



www.culinarymedianetwork.com

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Thursday, May 22, 2008

CMN Video: D'Artagnan's Duckathlon

CMN Video: D'Artagnan's Duckathlon

Video coverage from our visit to D'Artagnan's "Duckathlon" at Chelsea Market. We learn about the competitive events, from crepe flipping, testicle identification, rapid milkshake drinking, and more. We also speak with several of the teams.

Warning: Line cooks sometimes get a little rowdy when they unwind and use "choice" words. Hopefully, you can supply your own "bleeps" at the right moment! (Don't worry, it's just one)


A production of The Culinary Media Network. www.culinarymedianetwork.com






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Wednesday, May 21, 2008

CMN - RP144: D'Artagnan's Duckathlon

ReMARKable Palate #144: D'Artagnan's Duckathlon

This week, we attend the 4th Annual "Duckathlon" hosted by fine food purveyor D'Artagnan. The event brought together teams from some of the top NY restaurants to compete in food related identification and athletic events. Or was it more an excuse to drink a few in the middle of the afternoon and have a good time with other food folks? Either way, it was a heck of a party!



ReMARKable Palate is a production of The Culinary Media Network. www.culinarymedianetwork.com



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Tuesday, May 20, 2008

Recipe: Champagne Apricot Sorbet

Sorbet is the French name for sherbet, long popular as a cooling sweet made from fruit juice, liqueur or wine. Sorbets are so versatile, they can be served as a first course, between courses as an intermezzo, or as dessert. The Champagne added before freezing creates an interestingly flavored sorbet. Use about 1 cup alcohol to 1 pound of fruit or two cups of fruit juice. Note: In some regions apricots may not be ready until later in the Spring, so feel free to substitute with a locally available fruit that is in season.

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CMN - FP77: Chef Samantha "Mama Red" Izzo

Food Philosophy #77: Chef Samantha Izzo

Chef Samantha "Mama Red" Izzo from Simply Red Bistro in New York's Finger Lakes region joins me for a chat about her compelling history. Her restaurant (and philosophy) is the perfect amalgamation of her childhood in South Africa, her bluegrass roots and a healthy touch of sass!

http://www.simplyredbistro.com



Music: Beau Hall (http://www.beaurocks.com/) and George Fletcher's Bourbon Renewal (http://www.georgefletcher.com)

Food Philosophy is a production of the Culinary Media Network (
http://www.culinarymedianetwork.com/).




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Saturday, May 17, 2008

CMN - CHIC125: Culinary Student Questions

CHIC Podcast #125: Culinary Student Questions

My friend Chef Amy Wolf and I just completed teaching the second baking course for culinary students on Thursday. We had a great time working together and with the students. They had some questions that I though needed answering. They had some insightful ones and I tell about an old cooks story that I think you will find amusing. I also take you on a little sound tour of my neighborhood in Lincoln Park. Thanks for listening.



www.culinarymedianetwork.com

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Friday, May 16, 2008

Recipe: Bon Temps Crab Cakes with Remoulade

Who needs boring old tartar sauce when you can “laissez les bon temps rouler” with this classic Louisiana sauce? A rémoulade is like a vinaigrette, but jazzed up Bourbon Street-style with Creole mustard, capers and cornichons. It’s the perfect complement to our spicy crab cakes. Make the effort to prepare or buy fresh lump crab meat and you’ll be rewarded with the best possible texture of crab cake.

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CMN - AYCE50: Trail of Crumbs

All You Can Eat #50: Trail of Crumbs

Meet Kin Sunee, author of Trail of Crumbs, her story of being abandoned as a child in South Korea, and searching for a sense of her true self through the language of food.



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Thursday, May 15, 2008

Gastronomic Meditations: Dating and Dining

Those who have perused my recent articles will know that I recently married a man who is as much a sensualist about food as I am. Those close to me are also aware that I discarded a potent and deeply considered anti-marriage stance in order to do so, and that the catalyst for my philosophical shift was an insistent desire to share food with this man for the rest of my life (coupled with a realization that weddings are not a necessary part of marriages).

However, the path to connubial cuisine was paved with a few significant others—and a slew of insignificant others — whose tastes differed from mine as much as the taste of ketchup differs from that of ripe tomato. In retrospect, although I might not have recognized it at the time, I have been able to discover something about why the relationships inevitably failed by looking at the differences between the way that I thought about food and the way that each of them did.

Seth was my high school sweetheart, and for the two years we were together I spent as much time as possible at his house, which was partially a tortured attempt to avoid my own. His parents were true American cooks, and we gorged ourselves on spaghetti and meatballs with sauce that had simmered all day, Dad’s shepherd’s pie, and gingerbread (the cake, not the cookie) with whipped cream. The food was more psychologically nourishing than it was healthy, but at that time, the love that went into making the food was what fed me. (read more)

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Wednesday, May 14, 2008

CMN - RP143: Finger Lakes Wine Region

ReMARKable Palate #143: Finger Lakes Wine Region

This week, it's all about the food and wine of the Finger Lakes Wine Country, just a few hours north of New York City. I attended a tasting at New York's Astor Center, the state of the art tasting room above Astor Wines, where I got a chance to taste a number of Rieslings from the Finger Lakes paired with nibbles prepared by some of the region's best chefs. In addition, we learned about many of the fun activities on offer in the region, from sporting, to car racing, and of course, the heritage museums of Central New York.

Websites mentioned:

www.schuylerny.com

www.hill-top-inn.com
www.corningfingerlakes.com
www.womenonlyweekends.com
www.theglen.com
www.gafferdistrict.com
www.wagnervineyards.com
www.glenora.com
www.theglen.com
www.rednewt.com

ReMARKable Palate is a production of The Culinary Media Network. www.culinarymedianetwork.com



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Tuesday, May 13, 2008

Ingredients: Mmm...morels

Morels are found in various wooded places, mostly throughout North America and Europe, but as they are unpredictable and somewhat elusive (they must have chatted with the truffles), there is indeed a hunt involved in getting them to the table for feasting.

Dedicated mycophagists (people who eat mushrooms) head out in packs for spore sightings, and there is even a National Morel Mushroom Hunters Association in the U.S. to coordinate the effort. Though such hunters are always in search of the ultimate morel mother lode, if one is lucky enough to find a dozen, one has discovered a bounty. Such scarcity has led to a high price in the marketplace, but thankfully they are nowhere near the price of truffles.

Important note: There are “false morels” to be found in the woods, some of which are highly toxic, so we suggest that unless you plan to go with an experienced forager to hunt these, please purchase them from a reputable grocer. You can also buy them dried if they are out of season. Lest we have not yet included enough legal disclaimers, there will be at least one more in this dossier. (read more)

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FP76: The Edge Brownie Pan

Food Philosophy #76: The Edge Brownie Pan

Inventor and old friend Matt Griffin joins me to talk about his culinary wonder, the Edge Brownie Pan, which is taking the food world by storm -- even getting a nod from Martha Stewart herself.

http://www.bakersedge.com

You can also find the Edge Brownie Pan in our Gilded Fork online boutique!


Music: Beau Hall (http://www.beaurocks.com/) and George Fletcher's Bourbon Renewal (http://www.georgefletcher.com)

Food Philosophy is a production of the Culinary Media Network (
http://www.culinarymedianetwork.com/).




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Friday, May 09, 2008

Chef Mark on the Cover of Personal Chef Magazine

PC Magazine Cover

I'm so honored to be the coverboy of the latest Personal Chef Magazine. It's the main magazine for our industry, and it's amazing to have been chosen for it. The article tells my story and the circuitous way I came into being a personal chef.

More images:

Happy man

peppers

Photos by Kelly Shimoda/Veras

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Wednesday, May 07, 2008

CMN - RP142: Cystic Fibrosis Taste of the World

ReMARKable Palate #142: Cystic Fibrosis Taste of the World

I attend a special benefit tasting for the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, A Taste of the World, at New York's Chelsea Market. Over 25 restaurants and 20 wine and spirits producers gathered to raise money for CF. I speak with some of the chefs and a very unique wine coach.

www.thewinecoach.com


ReMARKable Palate is a production of The Culinary Media Network. www.culinarymedianetwork.com



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Tuesday, May 06, 2008

FP75: Restaurateur Sirio Maccioni

Food Philosophy #75: Restaurateur Sirio Maccioni

Chef Mark and I sit down with Sirio Maccioni, owner of Le Cirque and Osteria del Circo, to talk about his family empire, his thoughts on modern restaurants -- and what he told the Pope about his wife.

www.lecirque.com

Music: Beau Hall (http://www.beaurocks.com/) and George Fletcher's Bourbon Renewal (http://www.georgefletcher.com)

Food Philosophy is a production of the Culinary Media Network (
http://www.culinarymedianetwork.com/).




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Saturday, May 03, 2008

CMN - CHIC123: Fried Chicken with Chef Wook

CHIC Podcast #123: Fried Chicken with Chef Wook

Hard to believe but Chef Wook's favorite food is fried chicken. He and I talk about the best fried chicken, what to look for and how to make it yourself. We also examine some of the best offerings of fried chicken in Chicago and around the country. Be careful, don?t burn your fingers but you can lick them clean.



www.culinarymedianetwork.com

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Thursday, May 01, 2008

FPV26: Lillie Belle Farms Chocolates

Food Philosophy Video #26: Lillie Belle Farms Chocolates

My favorite chocolatier Jeff Shepherd joins the Pastry Princess and me for a tasting of Lillie Belle Farms' newest, spiciest, creamiest chocolates, including cayenne caramels and blue cheese truffles. I luvs me some Lillie Belle.

http://www.lilliebellefarms.com


Music: Beau Hall (http://www.beaurocks.com/)

Food Philosophy is a production of the Culinary Media Network (
http://www.culinarymedianetwork.com/).




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CMN - FPV26: Lille Belle Farms Chocolates

Food Philosophy Video #26: Lillie Belle Farms Chocolates

My favorite chocolatier Jeff Shepherd joins the Pastry Princess and me for a tasting of Lillie Belle Farms' newest, spiciest, creamiest chocolates, including cayenne caramels and blue cheese truffles. I luvs me some Lillie Belle.

http://www.lilliebellefarms.com


Music: Beau Hall (http://www.beaurocks.com/)

Food Philosophy is a production of the Culinary Media Network (
http://www.culinarymedianetwork.com/).




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