Charleston Cooks!

Today I checked out the cooking school Charleston Cooks! at the Maverick Kitchen Store in Charleston, South Carolina. Today's focus was on lowcountry cuisine; it's the school's most popular class. With Lead Chef Instructor Emily Kimbrough having this much fun, it was hard not to enjoy the 90-minute class: This basic class would be appropriate for anyone intimidated by the kitchen as well as more confident home cooks interested in picking up a few tips and learning some lowcountry recipes. The three featured recipes tasted great and weren't too elaborate to replicate at home. Though the school does offer hands-on courses as well, today's session was a demonstration class. Chef Kimbrough did all the work as we students gleaned insights by watching and listening to her. When the dishes were complete we got to taste everything alongside a glass of wine.
Some tips from Chef Kimbrough:

• add pepper toward the end of the cooking process; simmered pepper tends to get bitter
• farm-raised catfish will taste sweeter than wild catfish
• dry fish won't splatter when placed into hot oil; so don't just dredge filets through flour, pat the flour onto the fish until it is thoroughly coated
• resist the urge to stir onions; let them sweat and start to brown while you chop other vegetables
• pre-heat your pan; you want to feel heat rising from the pan before adding oil
• hotter oil will make fish crispy not greasy
• meat should be turned once during the cooking process; cook it two-thirds of the way done on one side and then flip it over and cook it the final third
• when cooking rice use a ratio of one cup rice to two cups water
• cook okra just long enough to warm it yet quickly enough that it stays crispy instead of getting slimy

Smoked Salmon Lollipops

This recipe for smoked salmon lollipops comes courtesy Chef de Cuisine Richard Gras at Salt, The Ritz-Carlton Amelia Island.

Ingredients:
1/4 side smoked salmon, chopped
1 cup red onion, diced
1 cup extra large egg yolk, grated
1 cup extra large egg whites, grated
1 cup parsley, chopped
1 cup cream cheese, whipped
1 cup capers, chopped
1 Tablespoon poppy seed
1 Tablespoon fresh dill, chopped

Procedure:
Combine cream cheese and smoked salmon in a robot coupe; process until smooth. Fold in chopped dill. Place in a piping bag and pipe into silicone moulds. Add stick and place in the freezer. For garnish: Place egg yolk, whites, parsley, capers and red onion on the plate and place lollipop on top of the garnish. Sprinkle with poppy seeds.

Yield: 10

Kitchen Tour at The Ritz-Carlton Amelia Island

Salt Cooking School at The Ritz-Carlton Amelia Island, which hosts six two-day sessions each year for up to 25 enrolled guests, begins each class with a behind-the-scenes tour. Among today's revelations...

Inside the cold storage unit, which is located outside the hotel building in a parking lot area known by kitchen staffers as "downtown," Chef Anthony Guillano held up a clipboard with a 'shopping list' of ingredients that Chef Jeanette Young was collecting for one of the hotel's kitchens: Outside the cold storage unit, Chef Young verified that she had collected all the items on the list:

(BTW, the staff refers to the loading dock area as "midtown.")

Chef Daniel Maule runs the cold kitchen or gradè manáger, a French term that he explained means “production and handling of all cold foods.”
Chef Guillano explained that organization is crucial. While showing off the dry storage area he noted that the oil is always on a specific shelf and the spices are organized alphabetically.

Chicken stock is an essential basic. At full occupancy the hotel has about 1,000 guests. For the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday meal alone the chefs expect they'll need about 200 gallons of chicken stock!

Salt, The Grill at The Ritz-Carlton Amelia Island is the hotel's fine dining restaurant. In response to the economy, The Ritz-Carlton has eliminated fine dining at some of its locations (including The Dining Room at The Ritz-Carlton Buckhead in Atlanta), but fine dining remains at the Amelia Island property and is thriving. According to Chef De Cuisine Richard Gras, the cooking done for Salt is only five percent of the hotel's total food and beverage operations. (There's also Café 4750, Eight Sports Lounge, The Lobby Lounge, Ocean Bar & Grill, banquets, room service and the employee cafeteria.) Here's a view of the line inside the Salt kitchen:

Brunswick Stew

While it's a great idea to commemorate local foods, it is ironic that this tribute to Brunswick Stew is located at Georgia's Rest Area #105, in front of the building that houses the loo.

One good pot deserves another, I guess.

***

FYI, for readers driving in Georgia, Rest Area #105 is located along I-95 between Exits 38 and 42 in Glynn County. I passed through it on my way to Amelia Island, Florida from Atlanta, Georgia. It's actually nice, as far as rest stops go, in that it offers an information center in addition to the basic necessities. The information center is open until 5 p.m.; the facilities are open 24 hours a day. (Honestly, I never thought I'd write about a rest stop, but there you go. After all, not every aspect of travel is sexy.)

Ruth's Chris Steak House, Kennesaw

Last night we attended a private, VIP pre-opening celebration at Ruth's Chris Steak House in Kennesaw. The Town Center Mall area was our former stomping grounds when we owned a house in Marietta. Now that we've adapted to/gotten spoiled by the conveniences of living inside the perimeter, getting up to Kennesaw (especially during Friday evening rush hour in the rain) felt like a long haul. Still, the restaurant impressed me more than a previous visit to the Sandy Springs location. For starters, the space is brand-spanking new and thus feels exceptionally crisp and clean. What's more, I had learned my lesson about Ruth's Chris from that previous visit and thus knew better how to order steak at the chain. More on that later.

Ruth's Chris Steak House originally hails from New Orleans. (So, at last night's celebration they handed out plastic bead necklaces and had hired a jazz band.) The press materials explain, "In 1965, Ruth Fertel mortgaged her home to buy a little steak house in New Orleans named Chris Steak House. After investing her life savings, she proudly added her name to the original. That's how the uniquely named Ruth's Chris Steak House was born."

"Steak House" doesn't exactly scream New Orleans, but some menu items like gumbo do. This version tasted authentically Cajun and was expertly prepared:
The crab-stuffed mushroom appetizer was tasty.

In an effort to taste as many menu items as efficiently as possible—thinking of you, dear readers—I ordered the mixed grill, which featured a 4-ounce filet mignon, tiny crab cake and a stuffed chicken breast. Priced at $34, the serving sizes of the beef and crab cake were shockingly small, but once I bit into the chicken that seemed insignificant. The chicken was more generously sized and was by far the star of the show. The tender meat was loaded with what I can safely assume is a shocking amount of calories (garlic herb cheese and lemon butter), but it was oh so good:
We ordered two sides to share. The potatoes in the potatoes au gratin were slightly undercooked, but the creamed spinach was yummy.

For his entrée, Dean chose steak topped with shrimp. The shrimp were dusted in Cajun spices.

Now, here's the trick to ordering steak at Ruth's Chris Steak House, which proudly proclaims that its steaks are seared to 1800 degrees, topped with butter and served on 500-degree plates in order to stay hot throughout the meal: If you want a steak done to medium, you must order it medium-rare or rare. Because it's going to keep cooking on your plate. If you don't know this and if a server neglects to warn you (in two visits to two different locations I've yet to get such a warning), you will end up with meat you consider overdone. Since I knew the meat-ordering trick this time, my steak arrived perfectly done (so I had to eat it fast) and was juicy, tender and tasty.

But here's the thing. It was a steak. Anyone skilled with a grill can cook one. As has been well documented, I consider steakhouses to be the most overrated, over-priced restaurants. But I'm in the minority: Steakhouses are the most popular restaurant concept in the United States. I must admit I'm probably too tough on them overall; who knows, maybe one day I'll bite into a piece of meat that turns me from a skeptic into a believer. Ruth's Chris is a nice restaurant, striving to be upscale with its white tablecloths and attentive service even while serving dishes that most competent home cooks can mimic. There are many things Ruth's Chris does right. But I am not a fan of the Ruth's Chris method of cooking steaks. I don't want my steak smothered in butter. I don't want a 500-degree plate: The first thing I want to do when a server delivers a plate and warns that it's hot is to touch it. Besides, I can cook a steak at home without worrying that it's going to overcook during the time that I eat it.

A bigger concern: The press release proclaims, "Ruth's Chris serves only the finest corn-fed Midwestern beef available." Aren't we past pride in corn-fed beef? Cows are meant to eat grass; grass-fed beef is safer for the cows, healthier to eat and better for the environment. It's time for restaurants to stop advertising "corn-fed" as if it's a good thing, especially if they want to compete with the grass-fed product readily available at grocery stores.

The two desserts we ordered were both such generous portions we should have shared one. The bread pudding is loaded with raisins, which is either good or bad news depending on where you stand on the issue of dried grapes.

The banana cream pie was very tasty. The bruléed sugar on the plate provided a weird texture for the fork to fight against:
Bottom line: Ruth's Chris Steak House in Kennesaw is a lovely new space in which to enjoy good service and standard upscale steakhouse fare with a Cajun twist at premium prices. At this steakhouse, chicken is your best bet.

Ruth's Chris Steak House in Kennesaw is located at 620 Chastain Road at the Embassy Suites Town Center. For more information or reservations call 770-420-1985.

Crab Cakes, Salad & Magners Irish Cider

The various cooking classes that I've taken over the course of many years don't make me a professional chef. So, as a professional food writer when I go to restaurants I don't really compare their food to mine. I expect a chef's preparations to be better, whether their recipes are more complicated, their ingredients more upscale or their preparation skills simply better. But I've tasted a whole lot of crab cakes around the world—I love them! How great to eat crab without wrestling the meat out of shells!—and I've come to realize that mine are damn good. In fact, I've found myself biting into more than one crab cake that got me thinking that I could give that chef a lesson or two.

Here, in my opinion, are the qualities that define a top notch crab cake:

• more crab meat than breading—my recipe ratio is one pound meat to a scant half-cup of bread crumbs
• sauté or bake—never deep fry
• moisture—the meat should be moist, but the crab cake itself should not seep mayonnaise or whatever else was used to hold the cake together
• balance—the meat flavor should dominate, but the other ingredients should add a tasty zing

I'm not going to reveal all my secrets here, but this recipe from Phillips is the one that I started with and then adapted in subtle ways to make it my own:

Phillips Signature Crab Cakes
This original recipe was developed by founder Shirley Phillips in 1956 and is the same traditional crab cake recipe used in all Phillips Seafood Restaurants today.

Ingredients:
1 lb. Phillips Crab Meat
1 egg
2 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
1/4 tsp. dry mustard
2 Tbsp. mayonnaise
1 tsp. lemon juice
1 Tbsp. mustard
1 Tbsp. melted butter
1 tsp. parsley flakes
1 tsp. Phillips Seafood Seasoning
1/2 cup breadcrumbs

Instructions:
In a mixing bowl, combine all ingredients except for crab meat. Gently fold in the crab meat, being careful not to break the lumps. Shape into cakes. Pan fry or bake at 375 degrees for 12-15 minutes or until evenly brown on each side and reach an internal temperature of 165 degrees.

Yield: Approximately 6 crab cakes

Along with the meal we drank Magners Irish Cider. Very yummy with slight effervescence, this cider tasted like a sweet/tart blend of toasted apples.

Fall Cocktails at Whiskey Blue

Nothing more quickly inspires envy in fellow patrons than being served five cocktails at once. Such was my experience last night at Whiskey Blue at the W Buckhead as I sat down to sample the fall cocktail menu (the same drinks are also available at Whiskey Park and The Living Room, both at the W Midtown). Two dudes at a neighboring table seemed to admire my fortitude and tolerance: They gazed with admiration at the colorful array in front of me and then with sadness down at their single glasses. Ah yes, lucky me!

The star of the new seasonal cocktail selection is the Lychee Manhattan: This drink is sure to win over anyone who thinks that they don't like a Manhattan. The mix of Woodford Reserve Bourbon (my personal favorite bourbon, distilled by the very kind and talented Chris Morris), Hennessy VSOP Cognac, sweet vermouth and lychee juice is simply wonderful.

Equally yummy but more sweet than savory is the new Bubblicious cocktail:
This blend of Bubble O vodka and pomegranate juice is a winner. The menu boasts that Bubble O is "the world's first bubble gum flavored vodka." This may be true in a technical sense; it's the first mass-produced bubble gum flavored vodka. But I can't shake the feeling that the makers of Bubble O stole the idea from Jèrôme Legendre, who I interviewed over a year ago for Sunday Paper and who was at that time infusing French vodka with Bazooka to create a cocktail.... But I digress.
Pomegranate is also showcased in the Pomegranate Fizz: Here Grey Goose vodka, fresh blueberries, pomegranate juice and simple syrup are topped with sparkling wine (the menu says "champagne" but that's not true—champagne exclusively hails from Champagne, France and this sparkler is Gloria Ferrer which is made in Sonoma, California.) Gloria Ferrer is very tasty on its own and gives this cocktail a pleasant mouthfeel; unfortunately, the bottle used to make my cocktail was corked (in other words, the wine had gone bad) and so I didn't get a proper impression of this drink.

The Perfect Pear Martini is the second pear cocktail on the menu at the Whiskey bars:
It is made using Grey Goose La Poire Vodka, brandy, fresh lemon juice, orange juice and simple syrup. It's a tasty, well balanced cocktail. But if you approach it thinking you're going to get a juicy pear flavor then you're sure to be disappointed. It sniffs like pear more than it tastes like pear. Still, it is tasty and well balanced—just not perhaps as "perfect pear" as the name suggests.

The Autumn Mojito is a classic blend of Bacardi rum, fresh mint, fresh lime juice, simple syrup and club soda gets a fall update by adding cranberries to the muddle. The cranberries add color and a burst of tart flavor. The flavors are in balance and yummy. This is sure to be a popular drink among mojito fans.

Bottom line: I most heartily recommend the Manhattan and Bubblicious.

Each of these cocktails is priced at $13.

Boudin

When I called Dean from the Dallas-Fort Worth airport to let him know my flight to Atlanta would be leaving on time, he happily announced that he'd found a place in Marietta that sells boudin. "I bought two links," he said in a very chipper tone.

I was returning to Atlanta after spending four days in southwest Louisiana exploring the newly dubbed "Boudin Trail." (Boudin itself is definitely not new in those parts, but the trail concept is—and the tourism marketing folks LOVE it.)

As a food writer, I love boudin (which is pronounced boo-dan). It's a true local culinary treasure and thus a great story. As an eater, however, I'm less a fan. (Don't hate it, but don't love it either.) The last thing I craved after four days of eating the stuff was more of it. But Dean was obviously curious and feeling a bit left out and so I cooked it up for home consumption. (After a 24-hour boudin break for me, during which time we ate osso buco for dinner instead.)

According to the Boudin Trail brochure, "Boudin could be called the spiced-hybrid cousin of beef or pork sausage. It's a food item that melds the best from Cajun, German and Creole culinary traditions and traces its history back to Canada by way of France." I suspect it was actually created by an innovative mother who stuffed leftover jambalaya into sausage casing, merely as a way to make her family think they weren't eating leftovers. Boudin is made of pork or beef or seafood or alligator meat, liver, rice, onions, parsley and dry seasonings. It's mostly rice. In southwest Louisiana, it's consumed at any meal and also as a snack.

Steam is the preferred cooking method for boudin. Because I couldn't fit the links into my steamer, I cut them in half. I don't recommend doing that: Without being sealed at each end, the casing shrank away and left the guts. The Marietta, Georgia boudin was much spicier than what I'd tasted in southwest Louisiana, but definitely authentic.

King Cake

The official cake of Mardi Gras, King Cake is a southern tradition. In Lake Charles, Louisiana I had the opportunity to decorate my own:
King Cake season of each year officially begins on Twelfth Night (January 6) and runs through Mardi Gras (which is the Tuesday before Lent). But, because they are so yummy, King Cakes can be made and ordered throughout the year.

King Cake is made of a yeast dough, flavored with cinnamon and decorated using the purple, gold and green colors of Mardi Gras. Inside each round King Cake is a hidden baby—it's literally a little plastic toy baby, so until it's been found take careful bites to avoid choking. As the cake is cut, each person anxiously awaits to find out if his or her slice includes the baby. "It's good luck to get the baby, but it's also somewhat of a financial burden," says Paula Stevens of Delicious Donuts & Bakery. According to tradition, the person who finds the baby in his or her piece of King Cake is not only blessed with good luck for one year but is also responsible to buy or make the next King Cake to share with the group.

King Cakes can be plain or filled with cream cheese, chocolate, fruit, nuts and more.

You can order a King Cake from Delicious Donuts & Bakery, which makes nearly 20 different varieties. Pecan Praline and Pralines-n-Cream are the bakery's most popular flavors, comprising nearly 55% of all its King Cakes sold.

UPDATE: The above photos show the cake before and after I decorated it while visiting Lake Charles, Louisiana. The cake was frozen for four days and then shipped to me in Atlanta, Georgia via UPS. This bakery's King Cakes are tasty, but if you're going to order any to be shipped I suggest that you request the toppings be packaged separately (there is room in the shipping box for containers to be placed alongside the cake) so that you can decorate the cake upon arrival instead of risking disappointment caused by warm weather.

Cowboy Kicker

Lake Charles, Louisiana resident Monte Hurley created a cocktail he calls the "Cowboy Kicker":

5 parts milk
1 part vodka
3 parts Irish Mist
2 parts Kahlua
6 parts Coca Cola

Mix all ingredients and serve over ice. May be mixed in a blender with crushed ice, if desired.

Here's a tip from Monte: "For a less potent drink, use 7 instead of 6 parts Coca Cola."

—Recipe Courtesy of Monte Hurley; published in "Pirate's Pantry: Treasured Recipes of Southwest Louisiana" by The Junior League of Lake Charles, Inc.

Georgia Grown Food Show

At the third annual Georgia Grown Food Show today, hosted by the Georgia Department of Agriculture, I visited 53 different booths showcasing Georgia fruits, vegetables, meats, poultry, seafood, dairy, preserves, nuts, wineries and breweries. Among my discoveries:

* LoganBerry Heritage Farm in Cleveland grows several different varieties of garlic (pictured).

* Sparkman's Cream Valley in Moultrie ensures that milk from its cows is processed, bottled and on grocers' shelves in less than 12 hours! (They like to say, "If you want it any fresher you'll have to buy your own cow.)

* Thompson Farms in Dixie raises all natural pork: no growth hormones or steroids, no antibiotics, no animal by-products in the feed, no chemical herbicides, no synthetic pesticides or fertilizers. Plus, the pigs are free to graze the pasture.

* Albany, Georgia boasts more than 600,000 pecan trees and is the nation's pecan capital. There are over 1,000 varieties of pecans! Pecans are the only tree nut native to the U.S., which produces about 80% of the world's pecan crop.

* Almond-licious Ice Supreme is a dairy-free ice cream alternative made of almonds, cashews, vanilla bean, fruit, agave nectar and himalayan salt.

* White Oak Pastures in Bluffton owns and operates the only on-farm, USDA-inspected grassfed beef processing plant in the U.S.

* Mercier Orchards in Blue Ridge grows 26 varieties of apples, with different varieties peaking from August through December.

* Clams are being farmed in Savannah.

* According to representatives of the Georgia Blueberry Growers Association, a new study that will be published soon shows that eating blueberries benefits patients with Alzheimer's disease.

* New crops are being introduced to the state—shhhh, stay tuned for more information!

El Potro Mexican Restaurant

Tonight we were feeling cheap, adventurous and hungry--the trifecta necessary to warrant a trip to Buford Highway. We live very near that neighborhood, which (in case you don't already know) is densely populated with Latin American and Asian restaurants. But we rarely go there because it's a crap shoot: You may get lucky with your restaurant choice or you may get food poisoning. With so many restaurants in Atlanta and too little time to try them all, we tend to favor those where it feels like we're betting our dining time and dollars at spots with better odds.

We pulled in to El Potro, mainly because we saw a bunch of people dining on the patio and took that as a signal this place might be good.

This is the sort of Mexican restaurant where the food is inexpensive and plated in combos. Dean ordered the #14: one burrito, one enchilada and one tamale for $6.50. I chose #21: one burrito, one taco and one chalupa for $6.95.

The menu brags "The Best Mexican Food in Town." Not even close. But it's not the worst I ever had; that dubious honor goes to Blue Frog Cantina.

The food gave me the impression that the folks in the kitchen didn't try very hard, they just did the bare minimum necessary to get by. So, I feel that's the appropriate amount of effort for me to put into writing this review. This is not the sort of Mexican food you would find in Mexico, nor is it a Tex-Mex or southwestern fusion. It's adequate Mexican-American food that serves the purpose of filling your stomach but fails to offer tantalizing flavor combinations. There's barely a taste difference between the burrito and enchilada and even the taco. The health inspector gave this place an 86, so it's not a disaster per se, but it has a dingy feel. We didn't order margaritas or beers, but this seems to be the type of food that would be most satisfying after several shots of tequila had dulled your taste buds for the evening.

Bottom Line: Edible Mexican food that would be best enjoyed after getting very drunk. We went once and don't plan to return, ever.

El Potro Mexican Restaurant is located at 3396 Buford Highway. The restaurant's phone number is 404-325-9312.

Trend: Undercooked Seafood

If you order steak at a restaurant, almost certainly the server will ask, "How would you like that done?" It's a helpful step toward making sure you're a satisfied customer. It's your meat to eat, after all, so the chef needs to know if you want it pink and cold or black and crispy or somewhere in between.

It's time that question becomes standard practice for all meat orders, not just steaks.

Once upon a time, not long ago, poultry, pork and seafood were always served thoroughly cooked—or what might now be termed 'well-done' (skilled chefs get it there without drying it out). With one standard, servers didn't need to ask how you wanted these meats cooked.

How things have changed! For reasons I cannot embrace, it's currently in vogue to eat many meats raw or very rare. Personally, I find this raw meat trend a disgusting insult to our ancestral cave men who had to figure out how to harness fire—it's one thing to stuff raw fish into your mouth if your plane crashes in the Pacific and you float around on debris for a few days then finally manage to grab a fish; quite another to do essentially the same thing while dressed in your finery while peering at the city skyline.

When I take a fork to my fish I want to see it flake. Yet sometimes I forget to tell the server that detail because not long ago that was automatically how it would be presented. Since cooking standards have changed it would be nice to get asked, "How would you like that done?" That way, disappointments like yesterday's lunch at Craft could be avoided: I was served a piece of salmon that by my standards was so tragically undercooked that it was inedible. I ate all the accompaniments knowing the fish would wind up in the dumpster. Which is a shame.