This is reinvestment into my own life and hopefully as you journey with me we both can make adjustments into our lifestyles that will positively effect each of us.

Let us begin this journey by understanding eating disorders, by adjusting our lifestyle we can work to restore balance within our lives.

/Chef James

___________________________________________________________

By Diana Rodriguez
Medically reviewed by Pat F. Bass III, MD, MPH

“A poor body image and feeling like you have no control over your life can contribute to an eating disorder. Learn why eating disorders actually have very little to do with food.”

An eating disorder isn’t really about food. The factors that lead to an eating disorder are complex. “There might be physiological genetic predispositions for anorexia and bulimia, and personality patterns associated with them,” says Martin Binks, PhD, director of behavioral health research at the Duke Diet and Fitness Center and assistant professor at the Duke University Medical Center in Durham, N.C. Eating disorders may also be caused by the environment surrounding food that a person experiences growing up and by their early relationship with it.

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Pig Picking Time

I thought this would be a good topic for me to write about taking into consideration that at the end of July, I will be grilling a whole hog at at a pool party.

In North Carolina it is pig picking time anytime of the year. The barbecue style will vary from what region of North Carolina you are in.  In the eastern part of the state, the entire pig (split down the middle) is cooked, and the sauce is made with vinegar and pepper. In the western part, only pig shoulders are cooked, and a tomato-based finishing sauce is used. Sorry ladies in North Carolina the cooking is usually done by males.

Prior to the Civil War pigs were the staple of eating in the South. I’m sure most of you have heard the saying “Bacon rules in the South”. Pig slaughtering became a time for celebration, and other families would be invited to share in the eating. Out of these gatherings grew the traditional southern barbecue. According to historians, southerners ate, on average, five pounds of pork for every one pound of beef.

In the 19th century, barbecues were an important feature of church functions and political rallies. Members of both political parties would come to the same gathering, with the leaders of each party competing with one another to supply the largest contribution of food and drink. Folks would gather from afar to reach the appointed place in time for the speeches, band concert, and all-important barbecue. The only accompaniments to the roast pig were thick slices of good bread, cucumbers (fresh and pickled), and whiskey. The saying “going whole hog” came out of these political rallies.

During the 20th century, barbecue joints or pits flourished (a typical joint or pit was a bare concrete floor covered by a corrugated tin roof and walls). Restaurants grew out of a simple barbecue pit where the owner sold barbecue to take away. Many were open only on weekends, since the “pit men” worked on farms during the week. As the century progressed, barbecue joints grew and prospered.

There are many ways and styles to cook a pig from Hawaiian style using a Imu (Hawaiian underground oven), Spit-Roasted to grilled. There are three basic steps involved.

1. Selecting and Buying your hog
2. The equipment
3. Cooking

1. Selecting and Buying your Hog
   • Order your pig from a specialty meat packer, grocery store or local locker. It is often necessary to give them 7 days advance notice. Before purchasing make sure the pig is absolutely clean.
   • Dressed pigs are 70% of the live weight. Smaller animals will have a greater percentage of bone and skin and will yield proportionately fewer servings of meat.
   • The carcass should be opened butterfly-fashion
   • Figure around 1 1/2lb of cooked meat per quest.

   2. The equipment (in this case grilling a hog)

   • The temperature at the roast should be kept constant and around 200-250 degrees F.
   • Most grills will have thermometers installed to monitor temperature. If not, use a large meat thermometer inserted in a top vent.
   • The outside temperature, wind, type of equipment, all will have an effect on maintaining this temperature.
   • Split the rib bones at the spine to allow pig to lay flat, being careful not to pierce skin.
   • Fill grill with charcoal. (about 70lbs for 100lb pig).
   • Let charcoal burn until it has turned ash-gray.
   • Place heavy wire, the size of the pig, over the grill, 13 inches from the coals.
   • Place pig flat, skin side up on wire surface.
   • Place second wire over pig, sandwiching pig between the 2 layers of wire (if available)

   3.  Cooking (thawed hog cooks best)

   • Because of variants in sizes, shapes, weights, air currents and methods of barbecuing, among others, it is difficult to give a rule of minutes per pound.
   • For estimate grilling times for a 100lb hog with a cooker temperature of 225-250 degrees with lid closed 7-8 hours
   • Always check the internal temperature with a meat thermometer
   • Once the internal temperature reaches 160 degrees F, the roast should be removed.
   • A good place to check is the ham, as it is the largest section of the hog.
   • Baste your hog once each hour with your basting mop and favorite basting sauce.
   • Turn hog over half way through cooking process.
   • ***Time is a variant! One must be flexible in the timing and cooking process, checking the hog often is essential.

Last, but not least, when you plan a pig pickin’ select a congenial group that likes good food and lots of fellowship and you’ll have a successful pig pickin’.

Barbecue Sauce
Listed below are ingredients for a eastern North Carolina sauce for those who desire a vinegar flavor.

Ingredients Approximately 6 quarts Approximately 1 quart
Vinegar 2 quarts 2 cups
Worchestershire sauce 4 tbls 1 tbls
Hot pepper sauce 4 tbls 1 tbls
Chili powder 4 tbls 1 tbls
Paprika 8 tbls 2 tbls
Black pepper 12 tbls 3 tbls
Salt 12 tbls 3 tbls
Mustard (dry) 3 teas 3/4 teas
Water (optional) 2 cups 1/2 cup

My dream and desire is for this to grow with fertile creative ideas, suggestions and articles that come from a wide spectrum of people from the casual food enthusiast, culinary students along with various levels of culinary Chef’s from the Food Service Industry and Culinary Schools. Coming together for one reason “Our love and passion for Food”

I’m not asking for financial assistance but I am asking for assistance for creative ideas and articles Yes I will be shamelessly promoting it and ask that each of you do as well.

For those that wish to contribute on regular bases, I am looking at various ways to show my appreciation on the My-Chef.org web site.

I know I get to do all the easy work, like building it and then leaving the hard work for others. Seriously, this can become a very enjoyable project for all that wish to become part of and assist in its growth and maturation.

For me it’s like planting that little seed in the spring, fertilizing it, watering it, caring for it, while watching it grow to its full potential.

If you have an interested you can get me on Face Book.

To see what I am building you can click the link below to the My-Chef WiKi Project.
http://www.my-chef.org/wiki/

Spring is in the air and I am totally stoked!!!

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Corned Beef and Cabbage Dinner

Growing up in a American-Polish-Irish household was a unique experience to say the least. Holiday’s were something special especially when it came time to sit down for dinner, St. Patrick’s Day with the memories of a traditional corned beef and cabbage was no exception. Growing up it was my favorite holiday dinner.

If it wouldn’t be St. Patrick’s Day in my house without Corned Beef & Cabbage, here’s an authentic recipe. Cured beef was a traditional St. Patrick’s Day dinner; the beef killed and preserved before winter could then be eaten after the long Lenten fast.

In the truest sense of the word then, this really doesn’t qualify as a traditional Irish recipe. But, it has become so closely associated with the Irish and St. Patrick’s Day, I’d be remiss not to include it.

After the Irish potato blight, or Great Famine, of the mid-19th century brought hundreds of Irish emigrants to the shores of America, the newly immigrated Irish Americans found corned beef to be both more accessible and more affordable than it was in Ireland. Both corned beef and cabbage were ingredients of the lower working class, and their popularity among the Irish population likely had little to do with similarities to the food of Ireland and more to due with the relatively inexpensive nature of salt cured beef and green cabbage.

For several decades following the Irish immigration, St Patrick’s Day was celebrated with music, crafts and revelry but banquets, while lavish, contained a scarcity of traditional Irish cuisine. However by the 1920s, corned beef and cabbage came to have an association with Irish American cooking, according to Hasia Diner in Hungering for America: Italian, Irish and Jewish Foodways in the Age of Migration and joined Irish bacon and greens as a food reminiscent of Ireland.

Now that St. Patrick’s Day has finally here and you’re tired of looking at that succulent beef brisket that has been sitting in your refrigerator week or two. Now is the time to take it out to begin preparing it so you, your family and friends can reap the fruits of your labor.

Ingredients:

• 4-pound corned beef brisket [see Note 1].
• 16 cups beef stock
• 3 large carrots, cut into large chunks
• 6 to 8 small onions, roughly chopped
• 1 teaspoon powdered English mustard
• 1 large spring of fresh thyme and several parsley stalks [see Note 2]
• 2 Bay Leaves
• 2 teaspoons black peppercorns
• 4 whole allspice berries
• 2 whole cloves
• 2 T Tomato Paste
• 1 cabbage [see Note 3]
• Salt and pepper to taste

Preparation:

1. Brine Beef Brisket prior to cooking (see Note 4).
2. Preheat oven to 300 degrees F.Place beef Brisket in colander in sink and rinse brisket under cold water.
3. Add oil to heated Dutch Oven and sear brisket to a deep brown color on all sides.
4. Add the beef stock, bay leaves, peppercorns, allspice, cloves, brown sugar, tomato paste, thyme/celery bundle, powdered English mustard, salt and pepper to taste.
5. Bring to boil, uncover and skim off any scum that rises to the surface. Cover and transfer pan to the oven, braise until very tender about 3 hours and 45 minutes
6. Transfer the corned beef to a cutting board and cover tightly with foil to keep warm. Add the cabbage and potatoes to the cooking liquid and bring to a boil.
7. Add more stock if needed. Heat and simmer vegetables until they are tender, about 20 minutes.
8. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the cabbage to a large platter.
9. Slice the corned beef across the grain of the meat into thin slices. Lay the slices over the cabbage and surround it with the potatoes. Ladle some of the jot cooking liquid over the corned beef and season with pepper.
10. Serve immediately with the horseradish sauce.

In addition to quality “Stone Ground Deli Mustard”, I also like the following horseradish sauce:

For the Horseradish Sauce

• 3/4 cup Mayonnaise
• 3/4 Sour Cream
• 1.4 cup plus 2 tablespoons grated horseradish (with liquid)
• 1/2 teaspoon grated fresh lemon zest
• 2 teaspoons Kosher salt
• Black Pepper, cracked or course (to taste)

Preparation:

1. Freshly cracked black pepper In a small bowl, mix together the mayonnaise, sour cream, horseradish, lemon zest, and 2 teaspoons kosher salt.
2. Season generously with pepper to taste.
3. Refrigerate the horseradish sauce for at least 30 minutes before serving.

[Note 1] ‘Silverside’ if you can get it; many butchers are familiar with the term and can prepare your cut of brisket in this special way. But, do allow them several days to prepare it properly.

[Note 2] Tie the thyme and celery together it will be easier to remove later

[Note 3] I prefer my cabbage crispy firm, so, I cook it separately. Cooked quickly in boiling water, it retains its beautiful bright green color. I season it heavily with fresh ground pepper and I don’t go easy on the butter!

[Note 4] For a more flavorful brisket it is best to brine it prior to braising. Here is a great brine recipe for corned beef Brining Corned Beef

In the Irish American tradition, here is to a tanker of ice cold Guinness and mouth watering falling apart juicy succulent corned beef and cabbage.

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Brined Corned Beef

Both the English and Irish have been corning beef (brining beef) for centuries. Salt kernels used to look a lot like corn kernels, hence the name "corned beef." This technique is used to transform a tough piece of beef into a melt-in-your-mouth delicacy we now associate with the celebration of St. Patrick’s Day and everything Irish.

A basic brining recipe is salt and water, but you’ll want to add some additional spices to make a truly delicious corned beef. Give yourself plenty of time to prepare this meal-traditionally the beef brisket sits in the brine between one and two weeks before it’s cooked.

You will always want to brine your brisket in the refrigerator at a temperature of 40 degrees Fahrenheit or lower (use bags of ice to keep temperature low if needed) so you do not risk the growth of bacteria. To brine your brisket, invest in a large plastic container and move the shelves of your refrigerator such that you can place the pot of meat and brining solution in the refrigerator until you are ready to drain and cook it.

Corned Beef Brine Recipe

Ingredients You Will Need:
1 teaspoon black pepper
2 teaspoons ground ginger
1 teaspoon ground cloves
2 bay leaves
1 tablespoon brown sugar
¼ teaspoon nutmeg
¼ teaspoon paprika
4 teaspoons minced garlic
1 tablespoon saltpeter dissolved in ½ cup warm water

Instructions:

Combine the ingredients listed above and pour over the brisket. Turn the brisket once a day as it sits in the refrigerator for between one and two weeks. Drain brisket. Simmer in pot full of water for one hour, then discard the water.

There are variations to cooking methods after the brisket has been brined, personally I prefer braising the brisket. This provides carmelization and flavor to the brisket that simple boiling will not. Use this brine and experiement with how you want to cook your brisket. Traditional Corned Beef and Cabbage recipe will be my next post so be looking for it as we get closer the St. Paddy’s day. Have fun brining!!!

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Steamed Seafood

This got me thinking which is better to steam or not to steam. There are obvious advantages to steaming with crabs and lobster, very Delicious if steamed properly. I was like most people in the kitchen, boil, steam or pressure cook food, mostly seafood, hey I did not know better then.

That was then this is now. When it comes to shellfish like shrimp there is a great level of flavor in their shells. Steaming you lose that extra flavor that needs to be replaced with condiments such as reductions, sauces or dips.

If whole crab and lobster are on the menu steaming really can be done. The new trend is “Steam Kettle Cooking” which typically include shrimp, crab, lobster, clams and trinity in a tomato cream-based sauce.

What is Steam Kettle Cooking? Steam Kettle Cooking and pan roasting can be interchanged. Steam Kettle refers to the type of stock pot used with seafood typically shellfish. Pan Roasting is done in a slightly different pan with meats and vegetables. The advantages to both are very flavorful, succulent dishes.

Steamed Mussels in a White Wine Sauce

*IMPORTANT NOTE ABOUT MUSSELS*
Mussels are best if served as quickly after purchase as possible. If you must store them, keep them in icy cold water in the refrigerator. When you are ready to prepare them, check to see if any of the mussels have opened. If so, discard them.

Steamed Mussels with Pasta

Ingredient List:
4 pounds of mussels, washed and beards removed

for sauce:
4 tablespoons butter
2 cups chopped red onion
3 cups light white wine (Pinot Grigio is great)
3 crushed garlic cloves

Preparation:

1. Using a vegetable steamer, or a collander in a heavy sauce pan, steam the mussels over one quart of boiling water and one cup white wine approximately 10 minutes. At this point the mussels should open – discard those that have not opened.

2. Melt butter in a sauce pan over medium heat, add the onions, wine and garlic. Simmer until the wine reduces to half.

3. Once the mussels are steamed add one cup of the mussel broth to the sauce and stir together.

4. Place the opened mussels in a large bowl and pour the remaining sauce over them.

Mussels are a little tricky to eat. But if you follow these directions you will look like a professional. Empty one shell, but make sure the hinge stays intact. Then use that shell almost like tweezers to pluck the meat from the other shells. Use the bread to soak up the broth.

This is a great recipe for most shellfish. There are variations such as adding cream to the sauce for that French or Italian cuisine. Then there is always the Asian style of steaming

Steamed Asian Style Mussels:

Steamed Mussels

Ingredient List:
36 fresh live mussels (green lipped)
1 tablespoon peanut oil
2 cloves of garlic, crushed
1 tablespoon minced ginger
finely grated rind of a lemon or lime
2 tablespoons sweet thai chili sauce
¼ cup of chopped fresh coriander
2 spring onions, finely sliced

Preparation:

Scrub mussels and remove the beards. Heat the oil in large saucepan with the garlic, lemon rind and ginger to sizzle for a couple of seconds. Add the chili sauce and mussels, cover for 3 to 4 minutes until mussels open

Steamed shellfish like mussels, shrimp, scallops are great served with bread on a bed of rice or a side of pasta.

For those who have an interest I have included a little about myself as well as those that are within my service area the ability to contact me for more information. In the resource section I plan on adding more culinary references that I believe will be of interest. Currently I have my cook book and personal chef web site listed for your convenience.

The new design will also allow me to add more pages of interest and not simple post threads, which I think is way cool!

With Valentine’s Day coming up this weekend I am planning on moving forward with new blog entries with the next holiday being St. Patrick’s day in March. One of my favorite holiday’s for cooking so you can expect to see me to begin posting for that way cool holiday. Starting with the beef brisket that I plan on brining next week and will continue to brine until St. Patrick’s day. Wow three weeks of brining go figure.

In addition to the holiday postings I plan on adding weekly posts.

So I hope that you will enjoy the new look as much as I have enjoyed designing it. Let me know what you think!!!

/Chef James

Valentines Day

It’s easy to add vibrant red color to Valentine’s Day meals with beautiful bright red fruit and vegetables, which just happen to be some of nature’s healthiest foods.

Deep red cranberries complement any meal, beginning with breakfast. Serve cranberry juice. Add cranberries to oatmeal…Bake cranberry bread or muffins. Use them in salads, sauces, and desserts. Tomatoes add a vibrant shade of red to Valentine’s Day meals, from tomato juice at breakfast to a rich red pasta sauce for dinner. Tiny bright red grape tomatoes are perfect in salads. They have a sweet, fresh from the vine taste, even in winter. Serve red potatoes or red beets as a side dish for dinner. Use sweet red raspberries, brilliant red cherries or heart shaped red strawberries in desserts. Make heart shaped foods to say “I Love You”. With the right equipment you can make heart shaped muffins or heart shaped waffles, even heart shaped pancakes. Use a big heart shaped cookie cutter to cut heart shaped toast. Pack a little extra love in someone’s lunch box with a heart shaped sandwich. Don’t forget a crisp, beautiful, heart shaped red delicious apple! Make dinner in a heart shaped casserole!

Chocolate Covered Strawberries

Dip them in melted chocolate or drizzle chocolate over top. Add stripes of chocolate, white chocolate or colored chocolate to plain cookies or drizzle contrasting stripes over already dipped pieces.

Start with chocolate melting wafers – milk chocolate, dark chocolate, mint chocolate, white, pink or red chocolate.

For a medium chocolate that’s not quite as sweet as milk chocolate but less bitter than semi-sweet, blend milk chocolate and dark chocolate together.

Directions for Melting Chocolate….
For 1/2 pound (8oz.) of chocolate wafers, or plain chocolate candy bars – broken in pieces, or chocolate morsels..

• Place chocolate in a 2 cup microwave safe glass measuring cup.
• Set microwave on full power or High.
• Use the following times as a guide, stopping to stir every 30 seconds.
• Melting times -
  milk chocolate – 1 to 1-1/2 minutes
  white chocolate – 45 seconds to 1 1/2 minutes
  semi-sweet chocolate – 1-1/2 minutes to 2-1/2 minutes
• Times will vary. Do not overcook. Chocolate scorches easily!

Dip or swirl pieces of fruit, cookies, wafers or whatever (be creative) into the melted chocolate. Surround the pieces completely with chocolate or dip them only half way. Place coated pieces, right side up on a wax paper or parchment paper lined baking sheet until the chocolate hardens.

Get the mood started right with this little treat for your loved one.

Chocolate Crepes with Raspberry Sauce

1 egg plus 2 egg whites
1 C. skim milk
1/2 C. evaporated milk
1 C. sifted all-purpose unbleached flour
1/4 C. Dutch process cocoa powder
1/4 C. sugar
1/2 t. salt
1 t. vanilla – optional
cooking spray
fresh raspberries for garnish – optional
powdered sugar for dusting – optional

Sift flour, cocoa, sugar and salt together in small bowl. Mix flour/cocoa mixture together with eggs, milk, flour and vanilla together with a wire whisk, in a food processor or blender. Cover batter and refrigerate at least 30 minutes or up to 3 days. Batter should be the consistency of heavy cream.

Spray a 6- or 7-inch non-stick or stick-resistant crepe pan or skillet with cooking spray and heat on medium-high. Pan will be ready when drops of water sizzle on pan’s surface.

Lower heat to medium and pour about a 1/3 cup batter onto pan. Quickly tip pan from side to side to coat bottom. Cook crepe on first side until golden, then using fingers to help, turn crepe over and cook on other side for 1 minute. Remove crepe from pan and place on a flat surface covered with foil or wax paper, cover crepe with a towel or wax paper. Repeat process re-spraying pan with cooking spray every two or three crepes. Stir batter often, if it becomes too thick, thin with a little milk.

Fresh Raspberry Sauce:
3 1/2 C. fresh raspberries or 1 12-oz. package frozen
1/3 to 1/2 C. sugar depending on sweetness of berries
1 C. water
1  1/2 T. cornstarch
2 T. raspberry liqueur

Thaw raspberries if frozen. Puree raspberries in food processor or blender with water until smooth. Strain into small saucepan, pressing puree through mesh. Whisk 1/3 cup sugar, cornstarch and liqueur into sauce. Cook all ingredients together over medium-high heat until thickened and clear.

Remove from heat and add remaining sugar if necessary and set aside to cool slightly before serving or transfer topping to a nonmetallic container, cover and chill until ready to use.

Filling:
1/3 C. raspberry curd
2 C. whipping cream

Beat the whipping cream with the raspberry curd until soft peaks form, or desired consistency.

Fill the crepes right before serving with the filling. Top with raspberry sauce.

Note: If you can’t find raspberry curd, substitute 1 C. pie filling. Whip cream first and fold in filling.

Enjoy a perfect edible evening with one that you love!

With the weather starting to set in with winter, it looks like the time for comfort food is here so I believe that I will get to work on some recipes that will have a great deal of interest. I feel something coming from my cook book what will it be? Ah there it is Beef Stroganoff that is the perfect comfort food to blog about.

Malaysian Shrimp

You get the link to this recipe at the end of this article.

This dish is very easy to make. So lets get started.

Get yourself organized first. For me, I get the shrimp peeled and devained first, then stick them back into the refrigerator. Once that has been done remember to clean your work station to help keep cross contamination down.  Next I take the fresh pineapple and cut the top and bottom off, then slice down the sides to take off the skin. From there it is easy to cut away the core. Chop your pineapple into bite size chunks and set in a bowl and again place that into the refrigerator.

At this point begin to assemble the rest of your ingredients, as well as slice your thinly slice your onion. Noe that you have all your ingredients prep’d. You are ready to begin.

Start n a wok or a deep heavy pan, warm the oil over medium-high heat. Add the onions and garlic, and stir-fry for about 5 minutes until onions begin to soften. Once you have done that you can now add the cumin, turmeric, coriander, and red pepper flakes. Stir-fry for 2 minutes. For those who are not aware turmeric is a great spice, it adds a very nice flavor and gives a nice yellow look to what it is added to.

In a bowl combine the soy sauce, brown sugar, and coconut milk. Add to the wok, lower the heat, cover, and simmer for 5 minutes. This will allow the coconut milk to begin thickening and brown sugar to dissolve and merry in the sauce.

Add the shrimp into the sauce. Simmer uncovered for 3 to 4 minutes until shrimp are almost cooked through. Add the pineapple and scallions, and cook 1 minute.

You will now have a thick, creamy coconut based sauce with tons of bold fresh flavors just waiting to be tasted.

You can serve this with rice as the base and spoon the shrimp, pineapples and sauce over top. Garnish with more sliced green onions and served with a spring roll with an Asian dipping sauce.

Optional: I have also added scallops to this dish. Be careful not to over cook them, if you choose to add them in yourself.

Link to the recipes
Malaysian Shrimp and Pineapples

Chinese Spring Rolls

Chinese Peanut Dipping Sauce