Don’t misinterpret me on this either.  I’m not saying she’s dumb.  She probably knows that the stuff she’s eating is bad for her, as most people do.  But, she doesn’t understand the nature of the beast.  It’s very complex, and at times hard to explain.  At the core, this is it, if it was grown in a lab (meaning chemical additives), your body doesn’t know what to do with it.  If it has been heavily processed down to a powdered state or the molecular level, your body doesn’t know what to do with it.  Your body had been designed to receive foods in complex versions, not powdered extractions at high levels.  Becuase it doesn’t know what to do with this extreme dose of say, high fructose corn syrup (which is extracted from corn and compiled together), it stores it as fat.

The recipe we’re using isn’t even really a recipe.  We just kind of made it up, but we love it so much! 

This is our morning juice/breakfast boost:

Carrots, kale, celery, beet (with greens), apple, ginger, lemon, parsley.

Mmmm! I encourage you to try it if you haven’t before.  Start out with maybe just pure apple juice freshly pressed.  NOT from a container at the store.  There’s a huge difference. 

Also, I strongly urge you to watch Fat, Sick, and Nearly Dead, it’s amazing and free on Netflix instant streaming!

If you don’t have a juicer but want one, I recommend the Breville, it’s wonderful, but  I’ve also heard good things about the Jack Lalane one.

ALFI (Atlanta Local Food Initiative) is having their annual Incredible Edible Grow It Yourself Fruit Tree, Vine, and Bush Sale!!

Prices are incredibly affordable.  ($22 for a Goji Berry Bush!)

It’s through the Georgia Organics Website, go visit now!

DO yourself and your family the favor of growing some of your own food!

That is all.

Teams will compete for the best tasting 16 ounce steak. Besides a great steak dinner, attendees and participants will enjoy live entertainment, a craft show and a car show. The North Carolina Steak Cook-off is the first steak cook-off in North Carolina, and one of only three such competitions on the East Coast.

There will be two divisions competing for prizes: the Professional Division and the Fire Department Division. This event will feature both local and National teams competing for over $6,000 in cash prizes in 2 divisions as well as bragging rights to be the First NC Steak Cook-Off Champion. The public will join in the fun through the purchase of a $20 ticket redeemable for a full steak   dinner with fixings featuring a 16oz ribeye. Ticketholders will be allowed to select their favorite chef for their steak dinner.

Tickets are on sale now for $20. Any group or organization wishing to sell tickets may contact us at NC State Cookoff  to do so and will receive a portion back from those ticket sales.

For all the Team Details and more visit  NC State Cookoff! Watch for more details here at www.ShipsGalley.com your local info on the taste of food throughout Pirate Country!!

Love this guy, great lecturer.

This is my take on the rustic style of pasta she would make for me. I cook spaghetti (boiled water with sea salt and a splash of olive oil) to al dente. This time I wanted some earthy flavors, so I added truffle oil to the pasta. I spooned some pasta sauce on top of the pasta and added some grilled chicken. Finally, I shaved a healthy amount of parmesan on top. It’s a quick meal that takes me back to Italy every time. (SFK)

This was my second attempt at making ramen. I’ve tried to add my take on this icon Japanese dish. I used instant ramen, but I wanted to do something a bit more elegant than just the run-of-the-mill instant stuff. I added grilled chicken (protein), fresh green beans (for a fresh veggie crunch), and topped it with a poached egg (for a buttery texture). Plus, to make a more complex broth, I added a couple splashes of fish sauce. In the end, the dish became something pretty amazing. I truly enjoyed the dish, but I feel there’s still something missing. Just shows you can make a run-of-the-mill dish into something awesome with a little bit of creativity. Stay tune for take 3. (SFK)

Since the weather is chilly, I’ve been instinctually craving heartier dishes. I saw this recipe in a cookbook (Cook’s Encyclopedia) that Katie got for me and made it on a Friday. It was gone batch by Sunday. I’m a little shocked to say the leftover stew was better than the freshly made batch. I think as it sat the flavors intensified and every time I reheated it the beef became more and more tender. So this is how I did it.

Ingredients:
3 lbs boneless chuck steak (cut into 2″ pieces)
2 tbs oil
2 onions (cut into 1″ pieces)
3 tbs all-purpose flour
3 garlic cloves (finely chopped)
4 cups beef stock
3 carrots (cut into 1″ pieces)
2 celery stalks (cut into 1″ pieces)
1 tbs ketchup
1/4 tsps dried thyme
1/4 tsps dried rosemary
8 white round potatoes (cut into large chunks)
Salt and pepper

Start by liberally seasoning the steak with salt and pepper. Pour oil in a stock pot over high heat. Let the oil begin to smoke and then add the steak. Sear the steak for about 5 to 8 minutes, continually stirring it. Transfer to a bowl to rest and save. Reduce the heat to medium, add the onions to the pot. Cook and occasionally stir until onions are soft and translucent. Stir in flour for a few minutes to make a sort of rue.  Add in garlic and let it cook for about a minute. Whisk in a cup of stock and scrap all the bits at the bottom of the pot. Pour in the rest of the stock. Add the carrots, celery, ketchup, thyme, rosemary, and 1 tsp of salt. Place the steak back into the pot. Bring to a simmer, cover, and the cook over low heat for an hour. Add the potatoes put the lid back on and cook for another 30 minutes. Remove the lid, bring the heat up to medium heat. Cook occasionally stirring the stew for 30 minutes. It should be down by then, but if not continue to cook until the meat and vegetables are tender. If the stew is too thick, add some water. Finally, let it sit for 15 minutes before serving and enjoy!!! (SFK)

Beef Stew

Hey SFK (Skinny Fat Kid) here, I have to say beef stew is the perfect cold weather dish and taste even better as leftovers. Tomorrow they’ll be a post on how I made it stay tuned.

I mean, how hard could it be to set up a factory similar to those which produce dried coconut and coconut water and coconut milk, to extract young Thai coconut from its shell and freeze it, or else dehydrate it, for use in food preparation?  It would seem, to me, at least, that such a venture would be cheaper, ultimately, than importing whole young Thai coconuts, which can go bad in a short time.  Such a production plant/factory could be established in a place where the coconuts grow, providing employment for local people (oh, green! oh, free market! oh, fair trade!), and still provide a competitive product for sale in Europe and North America (I say North America because I have seen, and partaken of young coconuts in South America, although they were not called “Thai” coconuts there.)

Saw this post this morning, and literally cried. Love everything they do.

Welcome 2013 which will hopefully be even bigger and better than 2012.

I literally just made this. I was in the mood for something that would warm me up. I took some instant ramen added a dash of fish sauce and top with a poached egg (which I just learned how to do).

Over the last few months I’ve taken to learning French. Lucky enough for me a couple of French women (Stéphanie and Anna) are a regulars at my store. We always were friendly and chit chatted with each other. One day Stéphanie offered to help me with my French (which is kind of epic cause she’s a french teacher). After a few lessons we became fast friends. Katie and I went out with her and was introduce to her follow country women Mélanie and Cécilia. We instantly loved them also.

Last Sunday we were invited to Mélanie (from Brittany) place for sweet/savory crepes and cider (a typical Breton meal. Which was delicious btw). I didn’t what to just come and eat, so I decided to make dessert. I’d thought up of a chocolate truffles recipe a while ago but had no real occasion to try it out until then. I made peppermint and salt caramel truffles. They we’re a big hit!!! they love them. The said it was the best chocolate truffles they’ve had since leaving France. Coming from French women it was the biggest complement they could’ve given me. Want to give it a try? I really should keep this one close to the vest but I’m a nice guy. This is how I did it.

Ingredients:
10 ounces of bitter chocolate
1/2 cup of heavy whipping cream
1 tbsp of vanilla extract
1/4 of cup of bourbon
peppermint candies
soft caramel candies
sea salt

Chocolate truffles is quiet an easy recipe but are time consuming to make. First chop the bitter chocolate as finely as possible(this will allow the chocolate to melt quickly and evenly). When the chocolate is chopped finely place it in mix bowl. Then take a sauce pan half full of water and bring it to a boil. Place a another mixing bowl with the heavy whipping on top of the boiling water. Let the cream come to a simmer and remove it from the heat. Quickly pour half of the liquid in the chopped chocolate. Mix the cream and chocolate together for a few minutes. Pour the rest of the cream, the vanilla, and the bourbon in the chocolate mixture. Stir the mixture until smooth (if the mixture doesn’t become smooth right away. Place the mixing bowl with the chocolate back on the heat source and stir until smooth.). Scoop the chocolate ganache in a glass bowl and place it in the refrigerator for 45 min to an hour.

After the ganache has chilled for about a hour use a spoon to scoop out some it. Using your hand roll the ganache into little ball shape spheres. Then take the pepper mint candies and crush them into tiny pieces. Take the soft caramel candy cut it in half and just use the body heat from your hands to stretch it out. Roll the chocolate truffles in the crush peppermint candies. Mold the stretched caramel candy onto the truffles. Finally sparkle a good amount of sea salt on top of the caramel covered truffles. Either serve right away or refrigerate until ready to serve.

My home girl and host Mélanie from Brittany, France

This is a typical savory crepe from Brittany, France; usually served with spiked cider. It’s usually made with gruyére cheese, ham, and over easy egg. It was delicious!!!!