Seasoned butters elevate dishes from simply buttery to utterly refined, in just a few simple steps.
Deep-Fried Butter Update
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| Deep-Fried Butter. Photo: State Fair of Texas |
Last week, Slashfood reported that Abel Gonzales planned to best his fried-food record at the State Fair of Texas with a concoction that shuddered even those with the most hardened of arteries -- Deep-Fried Butter.
The dish -- which comes in four flavors: original, garlic, cherry and grape -- took top honors on Monday when fair officials gave it the Most Creative nod in the Big Tex Choice Awards.
"It's similar to having a dinner roll with a lot of butter," Sue Gooding, a spokeswoman for the fair, told us last week. "It's very good."
Continue reading Deep-Fried Butter Update
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Deep-Fried Butter to Hit Texas State Fair
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| Photo: Ukanda, Flickr |
Gonzales, who has twice won top honors in the State Fair of Texas' annual contest for best new midway food, is back this year with deep-fried butter, a dish that's drawing gasps from even the most hard-arteried eaters. The snack will go up against fried peanut-butter-cup macaroons, deep-fried peaches and cream, fried stuffed peppers and fried pork chips with gravy for the Big Tex crown this Monday.
And it comes in four flavors.
Continue reading Deep-Fried Butter to Hit Texas State Fair
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Qué Es Queso and Why Are Texans So Enamored With it?
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| Ro*Tel's Queso Dip Recipe. Photo: ConAgra Foods |
When queried, this writer's wife, a Texas native, her relatives and friends answer along the lines of "it's just so good!" Queso is good; so is cow's brains. Queso is creamy and spicy and won't run off a tortilla chip like other salsas. Crucial to understanding the dip is the facility with which it is prepared. Ready in five minutes, it's a fiesta favorite. Are there Texans at a party you're hosting? Whip out the queso and welcome the adulation. "It's just so good!"
Another reason is Lone Star pride. "Texans have a special place in their hearts for queso and Ro*Tel. Both originated in the state," says Mike Locascio, vice president and general manager at ConAgra Foods, Ro*Tel's manufacturer.
Continue reading Qué Es Queso and Why Are Texans So Enamored With it?
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Frozen Treats ID Quiz
Could you tell a Nutty Buddy from a Drumstick or a Bomb Pop from a Firecracker? Take this frozen treats identification quiz on Slashfood.
Frozen Treats ID
What's the point of summer? Nibbling ice cream stuffed cones all the way down to their tips. Can you name these three from left to right?
- Nutty Buddy / Snickers Cone / Drumstick
- Drumstick / Ben & Jerry's Cookie Dough Cone / King Cone
- King Cone / Drumstick / Nutty Buddy
- Drumstick / Nutty Buddy / King Cone
What would you do for a Klondike Bar? Well, for starters, figure out which one it is! What's the order, left to right?
- Husky / Eskimo Pie / Klondike Bar
- Eskimo Pie / Klondike Bar / Husky
- Klondike Bar / Dove Bar / Eskimo Pie
- Eskimo Pie / Klondike Bar / Dove Bar
Here are two frozen on-a-stick renditions of a sweet dessert treat. Name 'em left to right.
- Klondike Tiramisu / Good Humor Tiramisu
- Good Humor Chocolate Eclair / Eskimo Pie Chocolate Eclair
- Popsicle Banana Nut Sundae Bar / Eskimo Pie Banana Nut Sundae Bar
- Eskimo Pie Chocolate Eclair / Good Humor Chocolate Eclair
The gumballs at the bottom of this conical confection give your chattering teeth something to chew on.
- Screwball
- Shocko
- Drillbit
- Warhead
Woo-hoo for red, white & blue! Extra points (okay, not really) if you can remember the flavors.
- Rocket Pop
- Bomb Pop
- Firecracker
- Astro Pop
Three super-sour flavors come together in this palate-punching pop. What's it called?
- Triple Shock
- Sour Blast
- Triple Blast
- Roman Candle
This ice tream truck classic boasts a crumby coating and a fun, fruity pink center. We'll share the flavor, but the name of this chilly novelty is what?
- Strawberry Colonel Crunch
- Strawberry Kruncher
- Strawberry Shortcake
- Strawberry Whitehouse
The details are a li'l bit sticky, but we're sure you can ID these choco-luscious confections from left to right.
- Dove Bar / Good Humor Bar / Haagen Dazs Bar
- Dove Bar / Haagen Dazs Bar / Eskimo Pie
- Good Humor Bar / Eskimo Pie / Haagen Dazs Bar
- Haagen Dazs Bar / Eskimo Pie / Dove Bar
Lick away the summer days with this classic choco-pop.
- Jell-O Pudding Pop
- Yoo-hoo Pop
- Fudgesicle
- Blue Bunny Big Fudge
One of these delicious treats is actually dairy-free. Which might that be?
- Left
- Right
Rooty tooty - this is one fruity pop! What's it called?
- Froz Fruit
- Haagen Dazs Fruit Bar
- Popsicle
- Jell-O Fruit Pop
Chilly little beads pack mega-sour flavor into a convenient little cup.
- Blue Bunny Buckshot
- Dippin' Dots
- Popsicle Shots
- Tear Jerker
Chopped nuts are the star of this classic ice cream truck confection.
- Colonel Crunch
- Toasted Almond
- Nutty Buddy
- Crunch Bar
This luscious, lightened-up ice cream sandwich tastes every bit as great as its full-caloried counterparts.
- Skinny Cow
- Slenderella
- Slim-A-Bear
- Slender Pie
This dreamy treat is a perfect pairing of fruit and cream - all on a handy stick.
- Big Stick
- Creamsicle
- Otter Pop
- Dreamsicle
Chocolate covered mini chunks of ice cream are a super-quick fix for a chilly treat craving. Name these two from left to right.
- Dibs / Poppers
- Poppers / Nips
- Dabs / Popettes
- Nibs / Dibs
This treat simply says
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Flashback to the Seventies: Microwaved Lime Cheesecake Tarts
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| Fresh Summer Limes. Photo: Flickr, Darwin Bell |
Back in the early 1980s, when my Aunt Evie was putting together our family cookbook, my mother volunteered a recipe on my behalf. Titled "Brucie's Microwave Cheesecakes," it stood alongside my cousin Teddy's "Sesame Street Cookies" and my cousin Cathy's "Oven Fried Chicken," evidence that, at age 8, I was already a kitchen prodigy. However, it was all a lie: My recipe was stolen from the "Sunset Microwave Cookbook."
Years later, I found out that my cousins' recipes were also reprinted from various sources. In the meantime, however, I felt like a plagiarist and was always careful to point out that it wasn't my recipe, but rather one that I made a lot. Even so, there was something about my culinary larceny -- intentional or not -- that rubbed me the wrong way.
Recently, as I was working my way through various family dishes, I decided to give this one another shot. While the recipe that follows owes much of its inspiration to the fine folks at "Sunset," the ingredients, preparation method and taste are definitely my own, and I take full responsibility for all of the above!
Get the recipe for lime cheesecake tarts after the jump!
Continue reading Flashback to the Seventies: Microwaved Lime Cheesecake Tarts
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Sweet Corn Custard - Feast Your Eyes
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| Sweet corn custard. Photo: High/Low Food/Drink. |
This multiscoop serving was captured by Andrea from High/Low Food/Drink after a late-night run to pick up a pint from restaurateur Danny Meyer's iconic New York Shake Shack. Though Andrea admits the yellow kernels were added at home "for artistic effect" only, they pop beautifully against the blue bowl, making the sweets look all the sweeter.
[Via High/Low Food/Drink]
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Fromage Blanc - Le Cheese Course
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| Fromage Blanc with pears and honey. Photo: Marylise Doctrinal, Flickr |
If you like eating thick, creamy French cheese such as Chaource, you're likely to enjoy fromage blanc. At Fromagerie Trotté, customers come in weekly for what at first blush resembles chunks of cream, large pieces of mascarpone or crème fraîche. They are not ordering cream, of course, but are lining up for fromage blanc -- also called fromage frais, which literally translates to "fresh cheese."
Fromage blanc is a young cheese that is made from cow's milk. It's essentially an un-aged fresh cow's milk cheese – that is, it represents the beginning stages of cheesemaking before the addition of rennet and salt. Therefore, its texture is soft and milky, similar to that of cottage cheese and yogurt. Like yogurt, it has a relatively low fat content (assuming that there is no added cream.)
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Vanilla Ice Cream Made Easy
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| Vanilla Bean Ice Cream. Photo: The Skinny Chef |
Most people don't know that one pint of many commercial ice creams contains more fat than you should eat in a whole day. That doesn't mean you shouldn't enjoy this calcium-rich treat. Making your own is immensely satisfying, and without having to worry about loading up on fat and calories while avoiding crazy preservatives that no one can pronounce.
Get Jennifer's Vanilla Bean Ice Cream recipe after the jump.
Continue reading Vanilla Ice Cream Made Easy
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Is Ice Cream Gaining Ground with Southern Sweet Tooths?
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| A simplistic approach to ice cream. Photo: Sir Mildred Pierce |
It's National Ice Cream month, and who -- the lactose-intolerant aside -- doesn't like ice cream?
Well, Southerners. America's favorite dessert is still a third-tier treat below the Mason-Dixon line, where cakes and puddings have a firm hold on the region's collective sweet tooth. Even in the most sweltering of Southern summers, New Englanders out-gorge their Southern neighbors. (Heck, New Englanders hang onto their ice cream eating edge straight through the winter, when their freezers are sometimes warmer than the air outside.)
Nobody's quite sure why Southerners never took to ice cream, although North Carolina food writer Sheri Castle confirms the phenomenon: "It's just not a big thing," she says. She suspects the relative paucity of milk cows might have contributed to ice cream's historical absence from the local food scene.
But a few serious ice cream makers are bent on tweaking the Southern tradition. Shops such as Ultimate Ice Cream in Asheville, N.C., and Morelli's in Atlanta are now providing a gentle -- and delicious -- introduction to the genre.
Continue reading Is Ice Cream Gaining Ground with Southern Sweet Tooths?
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Hello, National Ice Cream Month - Feast Your Eyes
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| Photo: Molly Watson/The Dinner Files |
National Ice Cream month starts today, however, and its devotees -- and really, anyone -- will have difficulty resisting a treat that looks this luminous and fresh. Indeed, the notion of spooning it straight from that frozen metal bowl is enough to inspire dreams of its own.
[Via The Dinner Files]
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Ice Cream 101 with Gabrielle Carbone of the Bent Spoon
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| Gabrielle Carbone, co-owner of the Bent Spoon Photo: Eating in Translation/Flickr |
As we're entering the height of ice cream season (though true aficionados would argue that ice cream has no season), and with National Ice Cream Month around the bend, we turned to Carbone for a primer in All Things Ice Cream.
What makes good ice cream?
Oh man. You know, it kind of boils down to good ingredients. You can make good ice cream hands down if your dairy and eggs are good. The organic yolks we use are bright orange and creamy, and our dairy is hormone-free. It's great if the recipes are good, but if you start with good ingredients, you end up with good stuff.
Oyster ice cream, bourbon-vanilla ice cream swirled with sea salt and Dolly Madison, after the jump.
Continue reading Ice Cream 101 with Gabrielle Carbone of the Bent Spoon
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The Sonic Boom of a Sonic Blast - Feast Your Eyes
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| Blondie & Brownie |
That's why this portrait of a Snickers Sonic Blast, taken by Blondie of Blondie & Brownie, is so diabolically delightful. You can almost feel the cold, creamy rivulets running down your throat, and taste the sugary burn of caramel and chocolate on the back of your tongue.
The Blast's consumption undoubtedly results in a swift and unforgiving sugar coma, but what a fantastic way to surf the waves of the glycemic index.
[Via Blondie & Brownie]
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Shavuot - A Very Dairy Holiday
The Jewish holiday of Shavuot begins tonight at sundown. The two-day celebration commemorates God's gift of the Torah to the Jewish people. Like most Jewish holidays, Shavuot comes with a food tie-in, and this one is dairy desserts, such as the shapely cheese blintz pictured above.
Why dairy desserts? While a dairy farmer may ask "why not?", the answer lies, yet again, in the Torah: its pages contain the Kosher dietary laws, which forbid the mixing of milk and meat. So when the Jews got the Torah, they also got the news that they could no longer cook meat in their pots. Which is, when you think about it, a great excuse to make cheesecake (even if, as one rabbi likes to remind his congregants, "Shavuot is not just about cheesecake!").
Or panna cotta. Or crème brulée. Or ice cream. Or -- well, you get the picture.
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Mont Vivant - Cheese Course
Pressed onto a baguette, crumbled over salads, or eaten straight, we can't get enough of goat cheese in springtime.
This year, voluptuaries and gastronomes seeking a decadently rich and creamy goat's milk cheese will go wild for Rainbeau Ridge Farm's Mont Vivant. Unlike other mold-ripened goat's milk cheeses (like Selles sur Cher or Valençay), this offering from Bedford Hills, NY has an exquisite bloomy rind (unusual in goat's milk cheeses) that seems to impart a more complex and cakey texture, as if it were a cross between Valençay and Brie.
Continue reading Mont Vivant - Cheese Course
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What Can I Get You Folks? - Server Revenge
Reality-Show Celebrities Serve Up Chef Curtis Stone's 'Hundred-Dollar Burger'
Foods Celebrity Chefs Hate
