When I lived in New York City and was working as a chef, I used to make this every New Year's and it always sold out.  Served over white rice and corn bread of course.  There are lots of southerners outside of the south :)

Hoppin’ John

• 1 pound black eyed peas, rinsed and picked through
• 2 large Spanish onions, one peeled and halved through the root, one medium diced
• 2 carrots
• 4 bay leaves
• kosher salt to taste
• 8 ounces bacon, cut into 1/4-inch strips
• 5 cloves of garlic, or more, smashed with the side of a knife and roughly chopped
• 2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 2 teaspoons red pepper flakes (3 if you like it really hot)
• 1 teaspoon finely ground black pepper
• One 28-ounce can whole peeled tomatoes

1. Put the black eyed peas, the halved onion, the carrots and 3 bay leaves in a large pot.  Cover it all with about three inches of water (you’ll need about 2 quarts).  Put the pot over high heat, bring it to a simmer, then turn the burner to medium low and continue to cook until the beans are tender, about 60 to 90 minutes.  Add two or three teaspoons of salt midway through the cooking.  (Add more water if the water level goes below the beans.)  Reserve two cups of the cooking liquid.  Strain the peas, picking out and discarding the onion, carrots and bay leaves.
2. While the peas are cooking: in a pot big enough to hold the beans cook the bacon over medium low heat  until the fat is rendered and the bacon is browned.  Add the medium diced onion and a three fingered pinch of salt.  Cook over until the onion is softened and translucent and beginning to brown, five or ten minutes.  Add the cumin, pepper flakes, and black pepper, turn the burner to medium and stir to combine the seasonings with the onion.  Add the juice from the tomatoes.  Then add the tomatoes crushing them in your hand as if you were furious with them, dashing them, their brains squirting out between your fingers.  (You could instead put them on a cutting board, of course, and roughly chop them, then scrape the tomato and juices into the pan with the onion.)  Add the last bay leaf.  Bring this to a simmer and cook for 30 minutes or so to reduce and thicken the sauce.
3. Stir in the black eyed-peas, and cook to heat through.  Add some or all of the reserved bean liquid to keep it juicy (add all of it if you’ll be chilling and reheating it).  Taste.  If it needs something, try a little more salt.  Still need something? Try some fish sauce.  Want it hotter?  Add more pepper flakes.  Too salty?  Oops!  Need to make a half batch with no salt and add it to this one! (Actually I’ve always found the above recipe to be on the money.)
4. Serve immediately, or if it’s Wednesday and you’re not serving it till Saturday (the case here), cool then chill it in the fridge uncovered, then cover it when it’s cold.  Reheat it slowly so as not to burn the bottom; add some water or some wine if it looks a little dry.
5. Serve with rice and some crunchy toasted and buttered bread, and garnish with pickled chillis if you have them!

Makes about 2 quarts of beans, which will serve about 15.

Eulogy For a Dying Breed

The last free-standing A&W Restaurant, open since the early 1960's on Dixie Highway near Kosmosdale, unceremoniously closed its doors a few months ago. The building now is a location for a Hawaiian hamburger chain called Kahuna Nui Burger and Fries..

This is a sad development.  One of my earliest memories is of my parents driving us from Fort Knox for frosty mugs of root beer.  I remember hot summer nights and the yellow neon lights of the drive-in.  The car hop delivering our food and drinks.  My brother and I would be in the back seat and would greedily handle our cold and frosty mugs of root beer.  The mugs seemed so huge in our small hands!  My mother was particularly enthralled with their phenomenal pork tenderloin sandwiches. and would stop by every time she was in that part of town.

Another part of my childhood has now faded away.

Sweet Potato Pancake Mix

I made these pancakes tonight for dinner and was amazed by how great they tasted.  The pancakes came out sweet and were wonderful with butter, syrup and a dusting of 10x sugar.

 Ingredients

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

3 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon white sugar

1 1/4 cups milk

1 egg

3 tablespoons butter, melted

½ Cup Cooked Sweet Potato

1 teaspoon cinnamon

 Directions

In a large bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, salt, sugar, cinnamon and sweet potato. Make a well in the center and pour in the milk, egg and melted butter; mix until smooth.

Heat a lightly oiled griddle or frying pan over medium high heat. Pour or scoop the batter onto the griddle, using approximately 1/4 cup for each pancake. Brown on both sides and serve hot.

The Book of Tea - Kakuzo Okakura (1862-1913)

This is one of my current bedtime reads. Kakuzo discusses how tea has affected nearly every aspect of Japanese culture , thought, and life. The book is very accessible to English speakers because Kakuzo was taught at a young age to speak English; and spoke it all his life, becoming proficient at communicating his thoughts to the occidental mind. In his book, he discusses such topics as Zen and Taoism, but also the secular aspects of Tea and Japanese life.   This is a wonderful book to read while sipping a hot cup of tea.  His explanation of the Japanese Tea Ceremony is particularly engrossing.

Homemade Kuhlua Recipe

1 12-cup pot very strong coffee  2 lbs. light brown sugar 4-6 tablespoons vanilla extract 1 bottle 190 proof Everclear   Bring coffee to a boil in dutch oven or large pot. Gradually add 2 lbs. light brown sugar and return to boil stirring constantly. Let cool until room temperature. (Add 1 cup of ice to cool water in a sink and use as a cooling bath). When completely cool, add the vanilla and Everclear. It is ready to serve.

An Amazing Hors d'oeuvres

I saw this appetizer on a TV show about Spanish Basque cooking.  The idea of combining anchovies and banana peppers appealed to me.  I simply wrapped the anchovy around a pepper which had been drained and destemmed.  The flavors were amazing.  The sweet and sour nature of the marinated peppers neutralized the extreme saltiness of the anchovies.  Eaten with a nice dry red wine, these make for a wonderful tapas.

Pizza Crust Recipe

This recipe makes a great pizza crust

10 ounces of general purpose flour
6 ounces of water
1 ounce of olive oil
1 package of  active dry yeast
1 Tablespoon of Kosher Salt
1 Tablespoon of Sugar

1. Heat water to 100 - 100 degrees and mix in yeast - allow to sit for 10 minutes

2. Mix remaining ingredients and form loose dough ball.

3. Place dough ball in the refrigerator for 4 hours

4. Roll out dough with a rolling pin and bake at 500 degrees for five minutes.

5.  Remove from oven and spread sauce and desire toppings

6.  Bake pie for 12-15 minutes

I make a triple batch and divide - the dough freezes well.

Kvass

My next project - Kvas (квас) is an ancient beverage from Slavic Europe. While it is basically a low-alcohol beer, it is enjoyed as a soft drink, even by small children. Factory-made versions have been available for some time and many are quite good. But homemade will always be best. Often spelled "kvass."

 

• Stale dark rye bread, cubed -- 1 pound
• Water -- 3 quarts
• Active dry yeast -- 1 (1/2-ounce) packet, or 2 1/2 teaspoons
• Water, lukewarm (110°F) -- 1/4 cup
• Sugar -- 1 cup
• Raisins -- 2 tablespoons

Method

1. Preheat oven to 200°F. Spread the cubes of bread on a baking sheet and place in the for about an hour, or until the bread is fairly well dried out.
2. Bring the 3 quarts of water to a boil in a large pot. Remove from heat and immediately stir in the bread. Cover with a clean towel and let rest in a dark, cool place for 8-10 hours.
3. Pour the liquid through a fine-meshed sieve or strainer, gently pressing one the bread to get the liquid out. Don't press too hard, or your kvas will turn cloudy.
4. Mix the yeast with the warm water and a pinch of the sugar. Set the yeast mixture aside for 10 minutes to proof until foamy. Stir into the strained liquid along with the 1 cup of sugar until the sugar is fully dissolved. Cover again with the towel and let set another 8-10 hours.
5. Strain the liquid again through a fine-meshed sieve or strainer and pour into a 1-gallon pitcher or container. Add the raisins and cover tightly with plastic wrap and a rubber band. Set in a dark, cool place for 4-5 days until the yeast sediment has settled to the bottom of the container and a clear liquid remains.
6. Carefully pour off the clear liquid into a clean container or individual bottles, taking care not to disturb the yeast sediment. Chill well before serving..

 

Fast Food

American Fast Food versus Japanese Fast Food - which one is healthier????  Hmmmmm

http://www.valumarket.com/valumarket_iroquois.htm

The best ethnic grocery store in Louisville.  I love this place.  I can easily spend a few hours exploring the aisles just looking at the various items I have never seen or tried.  The produce department carries everything from Horned Melon to Yuca Root.  The deli makes the best pressed Cuban sandwich in Louisville.  Seafood?  Huge tanks contain live fish for truly fresh seafood - right now the tanks are stocked with Tilapia.  This is where I buy my noodles, sausages, squid and sandalwood soap.  There is so much that I want to try.  This is not Jungle Jim's of Cincinnati but it is the best we have in Louisville.  If you cannot find something - ask for Josh.  Josh will get you anything you wish! All of the Valumarkets are good but the one in Iroquois Park area is the best.