London Broil

London Broil...  I've been searching for the origin of the term but keep coming up short.  But I did find out that contrary to popular belief, "London Broil" is not that thick ol' slab of top round.  In fact, it's not a cut of beef, at all - it's a method of cooking.  Who knew?!?

And, the traditional cut of beef used was flank steak.  Over time, it became a marinated piece of beef, grilled close to the fire, sliced thin, against the grain.   Really.  Who knew?!?

I remember in my cooking days at the Hyatt Lake Tahoe, we had a bin in the meat walk-in with marinating flank steaks in it 24/7/365.  I honestly don't know if that thing was ever emptied in all the years I worked there.  It seems we just kept adding to it.  But it was some of the best damned flank steak I've ever had.  We'd just push up a sleeve and stick a hand in there to pick a few out, as needed.

It was definitely a different world, back then.  Agribusiness still hadn't taken control of our food supply and we still had standards.  It's funny to think of basic, normal things we did back then that would flabbergast people, today.  For instance... we used to smoke and drink while working!  There were no such thing as latex gloves and we literally had cases of cold beer at our disposal at all times.  Customers would buy us drinks for grilling that perfect steak or just from appreciation for a stellar meal.  Make that a double Jack Daniels, thankyouverymuch!

But lest anyone think it was a free-wheeling party, we also had an Executive Chef, Peter Koenig, who ran that kitchen like a well-oiled Swiss watch.  I mentioned standards, earlier?!?  His cooks were clean, his kitchens were clean. We worked hard and we played hard. We had a lot of fun.  But there was no horseplay.  Trust me on that one.

Peter went on to become one of the founders of the Max's chain in San Francisco.  He was a great guy.  In fact, he hired me twice.  The first time as a cook at Hugo's Rotisserie right on the lake, and then, after a brief stint back in SF and a move back to Tahoe (long story) he rehired me on the spot and had me open the all-you-could-eat Ponderosa Buffet. I learned a lot from him.

Looking back, it really was a great place to be young.  And we ate really well.

So fast-forward almost 35 years and we're grilling a big, thick, top round steak labeled "London Broil".  I did a bit of a marinade in some Dale's Seasoning, garlic, salt, and pepper.  Basic and simple.  Mashed potatoes, steamed asparagus, and a bit of mushroom gravy finished the plate.

I was going to do the traditional thin-slice-against-the-grain, but Victor said to just cut him a slab.

Worked for me.

It was good.


Feed-A-Cold Peach Cake

Feed a cold, starve a fever.  That's what we learned as kids.  So I'm feeding this cold, whether I can fully taste it, or not.

It's just a basic yellow cake with fresh peaches mixed in, whipped cream on top, and a half-peach sliced atop that.

Really simple.  Really good.

I even broke down and used a cake mix tonight.  Shocking, I know, but illness does require sacrifice.  I have actually found *one* store-brand cake mix without partially-hydrogenated fats or high fructose corn syrup.  And it's only the yellow.  All the others have mega-crap in them.  Of course, all of the national brands have 'em and I don't buy 'em.

One thing to note...  When you add things like fresh fruit chucks to cake batter, they will sink to the bottom unless you coat them with flour before gently stirring in.  99% of the time I don't bother, but if you want the fruit to be more-or-less evenly disperseed throughout the layer, you should.

Dinner done.  Dessert done.  I'm off to bed.  I need to make an appearance at work tomorrow.


Breakfast For Dinner

Considering I've been in bed more hours than up the past few days, breakfast for dinner somehow seemed fitting.  Besides, we had everything we needed and I didn't have to go outside for anything.  The cold from hell coupled with hellish temperatures outside have not done much for my normally charming disposition.  Cranky?!?  MOI?!?  Of course, not...  Much...

Potatoes roasted in the oven, thick-sliced Niman Ranch bacon, and local, cage-free, jumbo eggs... Toast sliced from yesterday's homemade bread...

The appetite is still not quite back, and the taste buds are still on hiatus, but all things considered, it was pretty good.

I cooked us each three eggs, although Cybil ended up with most of them.

Three eggs are what I first flipped circa 1975 at The Old Post Office in Carnelian Bay, California.

I was collecting unemployment in San Francisco after being laid off from The Red Chimney restaurant when a friend of mine, Steve Johnson, called me up and asked me if I would be interested in a cook job up at Lake Tahoe.  I figured I had nothing to lose and a few days vacation at the lake would be fun, regardless...

So...  I flew up to the lake.  Steve picked me up and off we went.

The interview went great until Norma, the owner, said she wanted to see me flip some eggs.  They were famous for their three-egg breakfast orders...  Panic set in.  I had never - ever - flipped an egg before in my life.  Ever.

So with a brave face I went into the kitchen, heated the pan, added some butter, cracked three eggs, waited for just the right moment... and... a perfect flip!  I was shocked!  And Norma hired me right then and there!

The beginning of five years of living in the mountains started by flipping a couple of eggs.  Actually, it was the start of life as I know it, today!  Had I not flipped those eggs, I wouldn't have gone to work for Hyatt, met Dusty, Susan, and Michael, moved to Boston in 1980, and met Dorrie who was just here to visit.  Who knows how different things would have been if I had stayed in that house on 28th Avenue with Kira and Robert - and their soon-to-be-born son.

I wonder if I would have quit cooking and gone back to school for social work?!?  It's what I actually wanted to do.  I got pushed into hotel and restaurant by my old boss, Barry Beaupre, and he was signing my outrageous $1000.00/mo paycheck - a hellava lot more than social workers were getting paid at the time!  It was the path of least resistance, and Uncle Sam was only paying $260.00/mo in GI Benefits for us Vietnam Veterans to go to school full-time.

Me a Social Worker.  That really would have changed my life dramatically!  I never would have left San Francisco.  I think that's the most difficult part to imagine.  Never leaving the city...

No...  the most difficult thing to imagine is life without Victor.  I am sooooo glad I flipped those eggs!

So there it is - my life in an egg shell.

This cold is driving me crazy!


Rigatoni and the Cold From Hell

Right in the middle of a fabulous visit with friends, I developed the Cold From Hell.  Who knows where this one came from.  It hit me like a freight train, knocking me right into the ground.

I sucked it up and put on a brave face, but I have to admit I felt pretty lousy.  And while I think I hid the feeling lousy part fairly well, I couldn't hide the sounding lousy part.  I've been barking like a seal since Saturday. Ugh.  I did everything in my power to keep the germs contained around me, so I'm really hoping no one else comes down with it.  I went right into that 'working in a hospital' mode and just constantly washed my hands, didn't touch my face, washed my hands, kept everything around me clean, washed my hands...  Plus, no hugs and kisses when everyone left today - I stayed back and waved.

In the meantime, my taste buds have gone on a medical hiatus, as has most of (but certainly not all) of my appetite.

Victor came to the rescue tonight with leftovers from Saturday.  Sausage and meatballs and sauce with rigatoni.

I know it was absolutely delicious from having it a couple of days ago.  Alas, tonight I just sort of went through the motions and ate a few bites here and there.

Since I'm the only person I know who can get sick, not eat, and still manage to gain weight, I doubt this will help with the weight-loss plan

On the other hand...  right now, I don't really care.

As soon as the sun begins to set a bit, I'm crawling into bed.


7月愉快的四 (Happy Fourth of July)

What Fun!

Tradition flew right out the window, today.  While the vast majority of the country was setting up their grills and barbecues, we had the steamer baskets filled with pork buns, dumplings,, and an assortment of Chinese goodies.

We decided that since the Chinese had invented fireworks, we would celebrate China this 4th of July.  Did I mention how much fun it was?!?

We did a combination of store-bought frozen items and some things we made ourselves.  We had spring rolls, shu mai, and the dumplings above for appetizers, along with a myriad of home made dipping sauces.

We had more steamed buns - pork buns, chicken and vegetable buns, along with fish and scallops wrapped in banana leaves and grilled, sweet and spicy chicken with peppers and pineapple, and rice and potstickers...  There were eight of us.  We ate a goodly amount.

We all know that I'm not a huge prepared-food-purchaser, but the frozen Chinese stuff is unbelievably good.  It's all  stuff I definitely couldn't begin to make myself, plus it all has clean ingredients. Win-Win!

In typical Tim-and-Victor-shopping-style, we bought way more than we could have even tried to cook or eat, so we have several more meals in the making!

Family, Friends, and Food.  Who can ask for more?!?

It really was a fun spin on the holiday.


Wine, Women, and Food

What a fun weekend we have been having!

Friends are visiting from Boston and we're eating (and drinking) well!  That's a bottle of Marilyn Merlot on the counter.  Gotta love it!

Victor did the honors with this dinner - meat balls, sausage, ravioli, salad...  I baked a loaf of bread.

Simple food perfect for sharing with friends.  We're having a blast!

Today, we're adding a couple more folks to the mix and having a Chinese 4th of July Celebration!  Since the Chinese invented fireworks, it seems only fitting that they should be included in the festivities!

We'll be making a few things, thawing a few things, and steaming a few things we bought.

Stay tuned!


Grilled Chicken on French

Crusty bread, melted cheese, and grilled chicken. What could be better?!?  Well...  Adding some of Sarah's Caribbean Sea Salt definitely brought it all up a notch tonight!

As a rule, I don't use flavored salts because...  well...  they're salty.  I don't mind salt, I have a bowl of kosher salt on the counter right next to the stove that I dip my fingers into while cooking all the time.  But I can control that salt - I can't control the salt mixed with whatever spices or flavorings.  What I found out about the Sarah-Salt, though, is the spices are powerful, so a minimal amount is needed for maximum flavor.  It worked well going onto a chicken breast going onto the grill without being over-salty.

We have house-guests {{YEAH DORRIE!!}} coming down from Boston for the holiday weekend, so we've been busy working out what to eat for the next three days.  Minor panic and running around like crazy before people show up makes everything just look so spontaneous and simple.  It really is an art form...

Fortunately, Dorrie's a 30-year-friend so we only have to dust a little bit.    There's nothing worse than actually having to clean for people.

So right now, the plan is burgers on the barbie tomorrow, potato salad, baked beans, all that sort of stuff.....  Victor will do an Italian Feast on Saturday and I'll bake some bread when I get home from work, and Sunday will be our Chinese Fourth of July.  We're doing Chinese food in honor of the Chinese inventing fireworks.

Perfectly planned spontaneity!

I love holidays!