Archive for May, 2009

There’s a lot of dishes out there, and it’s hard for your average home cook to become familiar with the basic or master recipe of such a wide variety of cuisine.  So I try to make a point of learning at least one basic recipe for as many different dishes as possible, just to familiarize myself with the process and technique.  Hence the realization that I really had no idea how to make guacamole. Sure you peel the avocado and add some lime juice and salt/pepper, but it’s just not something that really attracted my attention.  Maybe it’s because I grew up loving cheesy nachos with only salsa or maybe it’s because [gasp] I’m not that huge of a fan of avocado.  So once I got a few requests to do a good guacamole recipe I figured it was time to get this dip down pat.

Starting with a little research, I settled on an America’s Test Kitchen recipe that included some bacon, spices, and a few veggies.  Nothing fancy, but definitely worth a try.  What I was really intrigued by was not so much how the various ingredients worked together, but how important the seasoning and lime juice played in making the guac really tasty.  I think I get it now, guacamole really is kinda brilliant in it’s simplicity.  And with a few little techniques on how to remove the avocado flesh, it was an easy and enjoyable little dip to throw together.

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Well some of you may have noticed a little drop in posts this last week, and for that I’m sorry.  What was expected to be a quiet and relaxing vacation visiting the folks for the first time in many years ended up turning into a bit of a shit show.  Oh don’t worry, I cooked.  I cooked my heart out and was never short of people to feed, but the writing just never got done thanks in part to comments at 4:00 pm like my Dad saying, “Did you want to try some of the ‘87 Napa Valley Cab we opened last night?  We saved you a few glasses.”  Or my mother offering to take me to the local resturant supply warehouse to pick up a few new toys.  Or an old friend that I haven’t seen in years, is unemployed and calling to see if I want booze, pre-happy hour.   It was a great trip but glad to be back home and settling back into my routine of work, blog, eat, drink.

I did however get a little work done. Made friends with the gang over at Endless Simmer, and they were even nice enough to put one of my posts on baby octopus on their site.  It’s a solid crew of food aficionados and I’m really looking forward to trading recipes, talking shit about Food Network and geeking out about weird ingredients with them. No doubt plenty of delicious food to come.

Also, Nuts and Bolts is continuing to grow with some updated walkthoughs and techniques so check it out.

Finally, I found this little article a little while back.  It’s as amusing as it is troubling, but when Judgment Day – Terminator style, finally does arrive, just remember that we taste like one of the best substances on Earth to robots… so there’s that.  Pleasant dreams.