Duluth Soup

What makes for a good chip?

The chip is a tough thing to decipher. There are so many different kinds: potato, corn, baked, fried etc.

To me a good chip must have some crunch. Not too much of a crunch, however, especially if you are snacking on them.

I feel a kettle chip is better suited for a side dish to a meal such as a sandwich, burger or hot dog. The texture, I believe, is not meant for snacking. It’s just too much crunch.

I like a plain kettle chip with a hot dog or sandwich. However, I like sour cream and onion chips with burgers. Strange.

For snacking, I also enjoy sour cream and onion chips (the Old Dutch variety) and plain tortilla chips.

I don’t care much for Doritos. I think tortilla chips and corn chips taste just fine the way they are. They don’t need to be jazzed up. I also think tortilla chips are meant to be dipped in items like salsa and sour cream — you shouldn’t do that with Doritos. I cannot stand guacamole or avocado in general. I never use that dip.

I like many different kinds of tortilla chips as well.

If I were pressed to tell you my favorite chip, I guess I would say Old Dutch Sour Cream and Onion. I don’t care much for Lays chips, in any variety.

Another "chip" variety I can’t stand are Cheetos. I don’t think they taste very good and they are messy. The cheese gets all over your hands and it’s just one big mess. I don’t care for any puffed corn snack.

Leave a comment on what your favorite chip is?

I have seen numerous cooking shows over the years and I feel I’ve developed a strong palate for what makes a good show.

Most of the time I don’t like watching shows with a person going through the ins and outs of how to prepare a dish. I prefer the shows where someone travels some place to find out about the cuisine of that area.

Here are my five favorite shows and why (they are in no particular order).

Anthony Bourdain’s "No Reservations," on the Travel Channel is a great show. He travels across the planet to explore the food and culture of each place he goes. He even ate warthog with the Bushmen in the Kalahari in Namibia. The guy is pretty funny too, which really helps the show out. His way with words really brings the show to the next level.

"Top Chef," on Bravo, features many chefs trying to make a name for themselves in the culinary business. It’s a reality show where mostly young chefs compete against one another for the title of "Top Chef," $100,000 for a restaurant start-up and a few other treats. Watching the chefs battle it out creating new cuisine, stuff I’ve never seen before, keeps me watching from week to week. The personality clashes on the show are also intriguing.

Iron Chef Japan, the original, is also a fun watch on Fine Living. This version, with translators of course, was filmed from 1993 to 1999. It is a culinary battle between an Iron Chef, at times there were three or four to choose from — and the one who dares to step into the culinary ring. Many times exotic ingredients were used, to me anyway, and the chefs seemed very eccentric and skillful with knifes, sometimes making plates that looked like paintings. I like this show better than the American version. It just seems funner and more eccentric.

"Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives" on Food Network is another great show. The one thing I really like about the show is chef Guy Fieri takes the audience on a ride across the country to places everday people eat. The food is always recognizable and affordable for even the leanest pocketbook. The food he tries also looks like food I could make at home.

"Good Eats," featuring Alton Brown, on the Food Network, is the only show on the list that features step-by-step cooking. His episodes focus on one dish or ingredient and goes through the "science" of the dish. He’s funny too, which helps the show. His recipes are easy to understand and look delicious.

What’s your favorite food show and where can we watch it?

Heidi Ash, owner of 185Chocolat, creates some mighty tasty chocolate.

I will not delve into why the company is so named that or some other details about Ash (Budgeteer reporter Matthew R. Perrine is doing a story on her next week), but I will discuss her chocolate.

It’s the best chocolate I’ve had … since I can’t remember when.

She started out my tasting with a Chocolate Mint Shortbread. It was fantastic. There was salt in it (I know there’s salt in many chocolate recipes).

The salt acted as a more powerful flavor-friend than I have normally seen in chocolate products.

Needless to say, the salt balanced incredibly well with the chocolate and the mint. I’m a huge fan of the salt-sweet combo. When I was a kid I always sprinkled salt on my chocolate chip cookies — maybe I was a “baby foodie.”

The cookie was crunchy and tender at the same time. I felt it would melt in the palm of my hand if I waited a second longer before I engulfed it.

Her French Roast filled chocolate was very good as well. The uber creamy coffee ganache balanced very well with the chocolate. I felt like I was eating a cup of French roast coffee, in a coffee cup shell of chocolate.

Her Caramel Knowledge made me feel “stupid.” It was if for all these years I’ve been dumbed down by the hard chewy caramel found in most boxed chocolates you can get from local grocer’s shelf. The caramel inside explodes in your mouth. Once you bite into it, you’re surprised. It’s like a caramel water, but rich, very rich. It may be the best chocolate candy I’ve had.

I could put that caramel on a piece of fish and it would taste great — you know how I like sweet and salty.

Other chocolates that I tried were her Three Chocolates and Raspberry Silk.

The Three Chocolates has a layer of light chocolate and a layer of dark chocolate inside a chocolate shell. The intricacy of how this was done really tell’s me something about the maker — she’s a perfectionist. The center of this divine treat was creamy and rich.

The Raspberry Silk had the some of the same aspects to it, but with raspberry — delicious. It was creamy and rich and makes me want to eat my fruits and vegetables.

For more about 185Chocolat, visit 185Chocolat.com.

Leave a comment on what your favorite chocolate is.

A co-worker recently came up to me and suggested it would be a good idea to do some kind of food page on a hot dog: the various types, how to prepare them, different condiments, etc.

Then it dawned on me. I’ve never written about my favorite hot dog in Duluth.

The "greatest," as I like to call it can be found at Bridgemans by the Miller Hill Mall.

They start out with the hot dog, then they cut little slits in it on the top, and cook it to perfection. Cheese and a strip of crispy bacon is then added. The bun is grilled on the outside too.

If I were stranded on dessert Island and could only take a few different meals with me, that is one I would bring.

It’s to die for. I recommend getting it with fried onion. The onion is very soft and cooked until carmelized. I like to get a salad and fries with it as well. Their fries are always crisp and the bleu cheese dressing is fantastic. It has huge chunks of bleu cheese in it.

I actually have never had a bad meal at Bridgemans.

Whether it’s a turtle sundae or their specialty hash browns (with cheese, onion and a few more treats) it ranks with me as one of the top local restaurants.

The prices are fair and it’s family oriented.

As far as local restaurants are concerned, it is comparable to the Pickwick. The food may be simpler at Bridgemans, but it’s incredible.

Leave a comment on what you think of Bridgemans.

With today’s trying economic times, we all try to make the most out of what we have.

A person should also apply this equation to food.

What are some of the most versatile foods on the cheap?

One thing that really stands out to me are eggs. Add some flour, a little leavening and a liquid and you get pancakes or waffles.

If you want to eat eggs a’la jazzed up, try putting different "stuff" in them like canned jalapenos or add a little sour cream to the top of the fluffy mountain most call delicious.

Make an omelet, it’s cheap and easy to do. Just add a little cheese and a vegetable or protein. If you screw it up and doesn’t look so hot, it will probably still taste good — only you and I will know.

Quesadillas are another cheap option. By some tortillas and fill them with cheese, and a meat or protein (much like the omelet theory) and you will have a cheap, delicious snack or meal — depending on what you put in them.

Nachos could also be a cheap meal when following the same guidelines.

Jazz up some macaroni and cheese for another cheap delicious meal. Add some chicken or a spicy ketchup and I could live off that for days.

What should not be lost in all of this is flavor.

No matter what your financial circumstances are, flavor can be added using some herbs or spices. Usually those are not super expensive and they can last you a while.

Share what you eat on the cheap with a comment.

Recently I tried out a soup that I had never tried before — mulligatawny. I had heard of it (in the Soup Nazi episode from Seinfeld).

I got the soup at The Greenery at the Holiday Day Inn shopping center. I also got a tuna fish sandwich with it, which was delicious.

The soup was good too. It had different Indian seasonings in it along with some cut up raw apples that I could have done without. They were very tart. It would have been a lot better if sweet apples were used or no apple at all.

Anywho, according to www.practicallyedible.com, mulligatawny includes a curry mixture plus onion and garlic.

Wikipedia (I know it’s not the most reliable source) said it’s a curry flavored soup usually served with rice or noodles. It is usually garnished with parsley and chicken meat.

So where do the apples come in?

Doing a quick search for mulligatawny with raw apples on Google, many different recipes came up. The one’s that I looked at specifically say to use tart raw apples.

Some of the recipes called for coconut milk which would make sense to balance out the apple.

The mulligatawny that I had, either didn’t have the coconut milk in it or not enough was used. I would prefer this soup without the apples.

Scour the Internet foodies and find a good recipe for mulligatawny. I enjoyed it, other than the raw tart apple.

If you would like to try it with the apples, use something very sweet to balance it out.

If you have ever tried mulligatawny, leave a comment on what you think of it, or ,better yet, your favorite recipe for this ethnic soup.

For some reason, people always like expensive food, no matter what it is.

Take, for example, crab. People love it and rave about how good it is.

I just don’t care for it. Sure, I enjoy  a crab cake here and there, but I don’t like most crab in general.

It’s just too sweet. Even dipped in butter, I still don’t like it.

I think the price tag gets people to like it. I have had crab many times, hoping my opinion will change, but it never has.

I really don’t care much for lobster either. It seems bland.

I do love shrimp. There’s so much you can do with it. I will eat shrimp cooked anyway and I will love it.

Shrimp is a far superior crustacaen.

OK, I’m also guilty of liking expensive food. The best burger I had in my life was made from American Kobe beef (I know it’s not the Japanese version, but it was still great). It was also the most expensive burger I ever had. I assume it would have been much more expensive if they had the Japanese version of the "sacred" cow.

I had the burger at the Burger Bar in Las Vegas at the Mandalay Bay. If you’re ever in Vegas, check it out. They have some of the best burgers.

What makes me even more proud, is that I beat Rachel Ray to this culinary hot spot (in my eyes). She featured the Burger Bar on one of her food network shows after I was there. Coincidence? I don’t think so.

Some foodies out there may say a burger place is not a hot spot — I disagree completely.

In the end, the taste is all the matters.

Leave a comment on what high-end food you don’t like.

Breakfast is not a hard thing to make.

It’s hard though, to make a good one. I have had some breakfasts from the area that have been very good, but have I had a spectacular breakfast in the past few years? The answer is "no."

I believe Vanilla Bean’s omelets are delicious and Chester Creek Cafe has some strong omelets as well (plus many other fantastic breakfast dishes). I have also had some decent breakfasts at Lakeview Castle (malt pancakes, some omelets, etc).

I love a good omelet and that is usually what I have for breakfast.

However, I’m not a one-breakfast pony.

Are ponies really known for doing tricks anyway? (Have you ever seen a pony do a trick? I certainly haven’t.)

Anyway, I enjoy hash browns (especially with fried onion) as well as eggs, pancakes, sausage, bacon, etc.

Where is a good place to get these items?

I used to love getting breakfasts at Loui’s Cafe in Duluth and Miller’s in Two Harbors. Those are probably the two best breakfast places I have come across in the area.

Both of those places have closed and I have moved on.

Where can I get the best breakfast that doesn’t involve a great omelet?

Leave a comment with one of your favorite places.

28th National Beef Cook-off seeks "Sonoma-Style" recipe entries

DENVER (Jan. – Sonoma is known for delicious food, great wine and beautiful scenery. In 2009, Sonoma will also be known for inventive beef recipes. The 28th National Beef Cook-Off will come to California in late September, during the pique of the area’s beautiful harvest season to host both a Home Cook competition and a Chef/Media Challenge. Home cooks nationwide, and local professional restaurant chefs working in the San Francisco Bay Area and Sacramento metropolitan area counties are encouraged to showcase their “Sonoma-Style” by entering their original, newly developed best beef recipes by March 31, 2009.

“Sonoma is the perfect location for this year’s Cook-Off, as it sets the stage for home cooks and professional restaurant chefs to tap into their culinary inspiration and create their best beef dishes.” said Sherry Hill, Cook-Off program manager for the American National CattleWomen, the beef industry organization which presents the National Beef Cook-Off on behalf of the Cattlemen’s Beef Board and the Federation of State Beef Councils. The Beef Checkoff Program along with contest sponsors Raley’s Bel Air and Nob Hill Foods, the official grocer of the 2009 National Beef Cook-Off, Korbel-Kenwood Vineyards, and Kunde Vineyards are bringing the best competition yet to Sonoma.

Home cooks from across the country can submit their original beef recipes that have a simple approach reflecting the Sonoma-Style diet, using few ingredients that compliment the beef while adding color, texture and flavor to the dish.

Recipe entries should shine with great taste, health and convenience and should yield four to six servings. Fifteen home cook finalists will be selected to compete in the Mediterranean-like climate that is Sonoma, Calif., for prizes totaling $70,000 on Sept. 23. One grand prize winner will receive $25,000, three category winners will each receive $10,000 and three runner-up winners will each receive $5,000 in cash prizes.

Professional restaurant chefs working in the San Francisco Bay Area and Sacramento metropolitan area counties are asked to submit their original, newly developed beef dish that best portrays “Sonoma-Style” cooking. Recipes should yield 24 servings. Six professional restaurant chef finalists will be selected from the San Francisco Bay Area and Sacramento counties to compete on Sept. 21, when they will prepare and present their original “Best of Beef” dish in a private Chef/Media Team Challenge, for prizes totaling approximately $5,000. One grand prize winner will receive one paid registration and trip to the December  Texas A&M University “Beef 101 Seminar”; one People’s Choice Award winner will receive one paid registration to the 2009 Culinary Institute of America’s Worlds of Flavor International Conference & Festival; and four first place winners will each receive $500 in cash prizes.

Four new recipe categories focus on the “Sonoma-Style” theme:

* Live Well with Fast & Convenient Grilled Beef Recipes: Home cooks will demonstrate beef’s role as a healthy and easy option for busy families.
* Teens Cooking with Beef: Teens submit their favorite family beef recipe that they enjoy preparing themselves at home.
* Lean Beef in Nutrient-Rich One-Dish Meals: Home cooks will pair lean beef cuts with other nutrient-rich ingredients to promote enjoyable, healthful meals.
* San Francisco Bay Area and Sacramento Counties “Best of Beef” Chefs: This category gives local professional restaurant chefs an opportunity to display their eclectic Sonoma flair for beef.

The National Beef Cook-Off requires entrants to enter recipes online at www.beefcookoff.org, or by postal mail to: National Beef Cook-Off Entries, ANCW, P.O. Box 3881, Englewood, CO 80155 by March 31. Mailed entries must be postmarked no later than March 31, and received on or before midnight April 7.

Submit recipe entries online, view the complete contest rules and explore winning recipes from past contests at www.beefcookoff.org. The contest is open to legal United States residents, residing in one of the 50 United States or the District of Columbia, who are 18 years of age or older as of January 1, 2009, to enter the "Live Well", "Lean Beef" or “Best of Beef” chef categories, or are between the ages of 13-19 as of January 1, 2009 for the Teens Cooking category.

— Press release

I love the holidays, especially the food that revolves around them.

I remembers the smell of my grandma’s sugar cookies baking in the oven when I was around four years old. Those cookies were being baked around the holidays.

That has to be one of my first memories. I really don’t remember much before then.

I guess I associate the past with food. I believe a lot of other people do too. That is probably why so many people associate food with the holidays.

Here is one of my favorite holiday recipes (I cooked it – with sausage – on PBS for "’C’ is for Comfort Food" at the beginning of the year). I would leave the sausage out if I were you.

Cheesy Hash Brown Delight

Ingredients:

2 pounds southern style potatoes (you can use shredded, but southern style – cubed – give you  a better texture)

1 can cream chicken soup

1 pint Daisy sour cream (you can use other ones, but I love this sour cream for dips and cooking)

1 cup four-cheese blend

1 stick melted butter

1 small onion chopped

1 cup crushed potato chips

(Optional) Sprinkle some bacon or ham in, to make it a main dish or spice it up with some Jalapenos or hot sauce

Directions

Spray 9-by-13 pan with cooking spray. Place hash browns in pan. In bowl, mix together onion, melted butter, sour cream, cheese, and cream of chicken soup (this would be the time you would add an optional ingredient). Pour over potatoes and spread about. Top with crushed potato chips. Cook at 325 for about 1 1/2 hours. Check with a toothpick.

This dish goes well with Swedish meatballs or fish cakes.

This dish is a staple at my holiday events.

What dish reminds you of the holidays?