GringoRicans in Fajardo
Last week I made Burgers for dinner.
Farm-stand fresh asparagus, tomato, basil and fresh mozzarella salad dressed with olive oil and balsamic vinegar. The mess on the left is a cheeseburger patty smothered in caramelized onions and topped with crimini mushrooms sauteed in butter and Madeira. Continue reading “Working on my Burgers”
Bad pun/reference, I know. My life is full of them and Phil Collins would probably shoot me for that one. But what he wouldn’t shoot me for is the luscious offerings from out D.I.Y. sous-vide cooker. This project, which has been in the works for well over a year has finally come to fruition. As I write four lovely, bacon-wrapped filet mignons, gently massaged with olive oil, fresh cracked pepper and sea salt are luxuriating in a bain maire of 54 degrees Celsius. Not 55 or 53… exactly 54. And in that gently circulating bath of precisely controlled water, good things happen. Very good things, indeed. It’s the magic of sous-vide. Continue reading “Sou, Sou-Vide-eo!”
Well, not everything works out. The travertine tiles all but disintegrated in the first attempt to get the oven above 500. Fortunately the stone that came with the oven fared much better, so for now it is our main cooking surface. We have located a local source for medium duty fire brick which according to the Forno Bravo website, is the correct brick for a pizza oven. Here in part, is their justification: Continue reading “That which is Pizza, Part 3: The proof is in the pie.”
The ceramic wool arrived and now its time to stuff the walls. The stuff that I wound up buying was the loose wool and it cost me $64.00 for four bags. That’s not a bad cost given the upgrade that it gives the oven. Continue reading “That which is Pizza, Part 2: Yes sir, yes sir. Three (and a skosh more) bags full.”
I’ve not had a vacation this year yet and am on the tail end of a huge migration at work that went about as un-smoothly as can be expected. Joao will be here mid June and he’s not seen a lot of the great nature sites that are within driving distance of here.
So I decided we’d do Watkins Glen/Finger Lakes and Niagara Falls. To round that out, we’re going to see some roadside attractions. The route we’re going to take will get us out of the Philly area quickly and to our first attraction, Roadside America. I love this place and take everyone I can to it. It’s like stepping back in time and being a kid again. Continue reading “Road Trip Vacation pt. 1”