A passion for food

"Madame" has been after me to share what we do in the kitchen, so here goes! I have a passion for preparing and serving great food. I have a goal of getting a great meal on the table every evening in around 45 minutes - the time it takes when I get the phone call that "Madame" is leaving work until the time we eat. I look for fresh ingredients - in season, supplemented with herbs, peppers, and very occasional tomatoes from the garden.

Tuesday, January 31, 2012

Beautiful Bok Choi

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On Saturday, a group of us went to the Coppell Farmers' market. A bitterly cold day - the brave folks selling their wares were all shive...
Thursday, January 26, 2012

Chicken with tarragon

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As part of the experimentation with sous-vide cooking, I laid out some goals and the beginning process. Here's the link to that first po...
Monday, January 16, 2012

The sous vide lamb chops

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For those who have been following the bouncing ball, you will know that I am in the sous-vide stage of life. I was lent a very high quality ...
Sunday, January 15, 2012

Sous Vide Part 1 Chicken Beef Lamb and Pork

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In this posting, I am laying out those items I plan to do in the first week or so of the grand sous vide experiment. Madame and I went shopp...

The Sous Vide Experiment

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My good friend David Gilbert has changed jobs and is gradually moving his belongings to San Antonio - to be the Executive Chef at the luxur...
Tuesday, December 6, 2011

The Cookie Exchange

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Madame's mixed doubles tennis team is doing a cookie exchange this week. The rules are that she must bring 2 dozen cookies, and several ...
Monday, December 5, 2011

Dinner theater

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Last Saturday, Chef David Gilbert and I cooked for some high powered business women at my house. Madame was of course a guest. It was fun to...
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Monday, November 28, 2011

Lemon Bavarian in the form of a cold souffle

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We often need a desssert dish to take to parties - something that will stand up to being driven to the party, look and taste fantastic. Bava...
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Wednesday, October 5, 2011

A surplus of tomatoes

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It is close to the end of tomato season, but I was able to snag 6lbs of seconds at the farmers' market last weekend. As usual they were ...
1 comment:
Wednesday, September 28, 2011

Pork with kale and beans - thanks to "the Chew"

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I have to admit it, I watched some of the first episode of "The Chew" a daytime talk show on ABC in the USA. It features several e...
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Monday, September 26, 2011

A sauce for empanadas

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There's a wonderful Empanada shop near where we live. It has become the go to place for appetizers for some of our bigger parties. Yeste...
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Friday, September 9, 2011

Plum pickle

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On a road trip to Houston recently, Madame and I stopped  in Fairfield to eat at the mighty fine Sam's restaurant. The breakfast buffet...
Sunday, August 21, 2011

baba ghanouj, ganoush, ganush - how about eggplant dip!

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This recipe is inspired by a couple of my favorite food TV folks. America's Test Kitchen and Alton Brown. About 2 minutes in to the att...
Saturday, August 20, 2011

What is missing from most grilled cheese sandwiches

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It's funny how grilled cheese sandwiches often don't involve a grill. The grill is the secret to a really tasty sandwich, and doing ...
Friday, July 8, 2011

Chateau des Poccards

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Oh dear this is turning into a travelogue and not a foodalogue. But I must pay homage to the Chateau des Poccards in Hurigny, just outside M...
Thursday, July 7, 2011

seabirdskitchen and all things goat

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On our trip to the Macon region, we spent time with local friends. That's the way to experience a region! So we enthusiastically support...
Wednesday, July 6, 2011

Seabirdskitchen visits Georges Blanc

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Madame and I have been on vacation in France. There'll be other posts, but the pride of place goes to our fantastic evening at Georges B...
2 comments:
Saturday, June 11, 2011

Daily bread on the grill

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It's summer here in Texas. It shouldn't be yet, but it is very hot. So I have no desire to use the oven. I figured that with some ap...
Saturday, May 21, 2011

More playing with eggs

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When Madame is away, I like to experiment in the kitchen. It keeps me out of trouble, and endlessly entertained. Mostly by failed experiment...
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Tuesday, May 3, 2011

Seabirdskitchen, NTTV and the Dallas Arboretum

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Last Saturday, Madame asked me if I would help the NTTV students during their photo-shoot at the Dallas Arboretum. What visit to a beautiful...
Saturday, March 19, 2011

Salad - it doesn't have to be boring

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This dish received the "OMG this is fantastic, we must serve it to people" accolade from Madame. For those who have seen previous ...
1 comment:
Wednesday, March 16, 2011

A couple of revelations

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This isn't about specific dishes, but about how to get some things to "work". First the dreaded all you can eat buffet. Now I ...
Tuesday, March 15, 2011

Pi day

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On Pi day (3/14 in the USA) it is traditional to make a pie. This year was no exception. I wanted a steak and kidney, but buying kidneys is ...
Sunday, February 6, 2011

Superbowl beans

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Our good friends Rick and Claudia always do a terrific superbowl party. They asked us to bring something - either bbq beans or a green bean ...
Sunday, January 16, 2011

The blender

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For several years I have had a jones for a Vitamix blender. Why? They are cool, they are easy to clean, they do a great job... However the b...
Tuesday, December 28, 2010

Boxing Day

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Our tradition during the Christmas Season is to have a Boxing Day party. So, while Christmas for many is a time of plenty and friendship,...
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The Bloody Mary Party

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This was a much more sedate affair than some of our parties. We had the Christmas Eve blowout the night before and were due to go to the Fou...
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Christmas 2010

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It all started innocently enough. Madame and I were in Bastrop for a wedding in September. In came a text saying, "My mother in law is ...
Sunday, December 12, 2010

Scones

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One of Madame's co workers has had a hankering for scones. So I was press ganged into making some. Luckily they are pretty easy to make....
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Chris Bird
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