Entries from The Amateur Gourmet tagged with 'FN Dish'
My Secret Cookbook Gems
After yesterday's cookbook slaughter, I thought I'd steer the blog to sweeter waters and talk about a subject I've never addressed on the blog before: my secret cookbook gems. No, I'm not talking about books that I actually cook from. Those would be my favorite cooking cookbooks and you can find those on the lower right hand corner of the page under the heading "The Amateur Gourmet Recommends." These books, my secret cookbook gems, are the ones with the most sentimental value: the ones that I cherish the most, the ones I'd grab first if the apartment was on fire....
The Return of The Amateur Gourmet
Hi Friends, I've had a very restful (and eventful) two weeks. That's me, above, eating a Dungeness Crab on Eliza Island in the Pacific Northwest (one of the best meals of my life, but more on that next week). After a week there kayaking, playing cards and, of course, crabbing, I journeyed with Craig to Cape Cod where we enjoyed high-speed boat tubing (I chickened out), merciless games of Mafia and fantastic meals of ribs, corn, and clam chowder. I returned with 130 pictures on my camera and crashed my computer yesterday trying to edit them all at once in Photoshop (I'm pretty dumb.) Was I really able to turn my back on my site for two weeks, without monitoring or reading your comments or worrying about how the next day's post would fare? As my web guy Justin will tell you (adamantly, I'd guess): NO!!!! I tried, I really did. But I love this blog and I loved the guest posts! Didn't you? Allow me to pause for a second and thank thank thank all my guest posters: I'm so honored to have had such talented writers writing on my blog. Thank you thank you thank you for your fantastic posts which I read, secretly, on my iPhone while surrounded by glorious nature. What does nature have on Phoebe Damrosch? Or The Science of Fressing? Nothing, I tell you, nothing! Now that I'm back, my life's about to change dramatically. The big news (and only the most fervent of you must have discovered it) is that I will no longer be hosting the FN Dish (here's my farewell video) ; instead, I'm working on a brand new project for Food Network online. What is it? When will it launch? Who else is working on it? I'm sorry, but these are secrets that I can't yet reveal, but I will say that the new show is much, much, much more in the spirit of this blog--it's funny, slightly edgy, and food-obsessed. I think you're going to love it. I'm going to miss working with my FN Dish team: especially Matthew and Rachael, who I traveled the country with (to Vegas and beyond) and really enjoyed knowing as friends. But we'll stay in touch (maybe Matthew will do us another guest post?) and I encourage everyone to keep watching The FN Dish, especially since my replacement, Bruce Seidel, is a really awesome guy. So what else is in store for The Amateur Gourmet? My book comes out in paperback on September 30th. Check out the nifty new paperback cover: I'll be doing a reading (and a cooking demonstration! Yikes!) at the Baltimore Book Festival at the end of the month so more on that soon. And my trip to Baltimore fits in perfectly with this month's banner theme (clear your cache and re-load the site): crabs! Having had Dungeness crabs at the start of the month in the Pacific Northwest, I'll be able to compare them to blue crabs in Baltimore at the end of the month (though crab season might be over....) Will I finally settle the Great Crab Debate? Stay tuned... (and Baltimorites: where's the best place to get crab in Baltimore?) Hope you all had very restful and rejuvenating Labor Day weekends and that your last days of summer are happy ones. Thanks for your patience while I was gone... can't wait to get blogging again. Until next week..... Forever yours, The Amateur Gourmet...
I smell like wood.
And other lessons learned on the set of Ted Allen's new show, "Food Detectives":...
Two Things
(1) If you want a free sushi set, you have a very good chance of winning one by taking a picture of yourself doing an Iron Chef Chairman impression and e-mailing it to fndish@foodnetwork.com. If you have a Mac, just open up the Photo Booth app, look seriously at the camera, snap a pic and send it in. [Contest is part of this week's episode.] (2) I am doing something VERY sketchy this weekend. I'm the "celebrity" guest at sketch comedy troupe Slightly Known People's weekly show tomorrow (Saturday) night, at 10:30, at The Green Room, 45 Bleecker Street. The cover is $12 and my participation involves an Iron Chef-style cocktail-making contest with guest judges Mary Greenwalt from "I Survived A Japanese Game Show" and Serious Eats's own Erin Zimmer. Hope to see you there!...
The Chairman Song
In honor of his holiness The Chairman, ruler of Kitchen Stadium on "Iron Chef America," I present to you an original composition, words and music and screechy singing by yours truly. Allez "The Chairman Song!" If you love this and want to embed it on your blog, go here. If you'd like to sing along with the lyrics, click ahead......
Anne Burrell
This week's FN Dish takes me into the kitchen of Anne Burrell who you may recognize as Mario Batali's sous chef on Iron Chef America. She's also the chef at Centro Vinoteca (pronounce it "CHENtro" or she'll correct you!) and the host of the brand new Food Network show "Secrets of a Restaurant Chef." For those of you who, like me, bemoan the loss of "Molto Mario" and other authentic cooking shows on Food Network, this is a show to watch and support. Leave a comment on the video page with your best cooking secret and enter to win a Chrome-Plated Al Dente Pasta Machine by VillaWare. Then click here to watch my Next Food Network Star viewing party with Sunny Anderson....
Family Meal
I helped cook family meal last week at Food Network and now you get to watch: For those of you following Next Food Network Star, don't miss my viewing party with Sunny Anderson....
I Party With Paula
While my colleagues are covering the folderol that is the James Beard Awards, I'm keeping my head high and covering a party of a different sort: Paula's Party. Yes, I attended one of Paula's parties--she was dressed as a stick of butter--and I conversed with the likes of Richard Simmons and Ana Gasteyer. You can see it all here: [If you want to embed it on your site, click here.] And for those of you who watched last night's "Next Food Network Star," click here to hear what Sunny Anderson and I had to say; to see my exit interview with the eliminated contestant, click here....
Who Buys The Food for Food Network?
Meet Dave Mechlowicz.... If you'd like to get Dave's recipe for Black Bass with Fennel and Blood Orange Salad or if you'd like to enter to win a package of Esposito's sausage, click here. And for those who watched Next Food Network Star, don't miss my viewing party with Sunny Anderson... click here!...
The Next Food Network Star
I feel like i've done a decent job of keeping church and state separate here on my blog; now that I work for Food Network, you don't see me blatantly promoting its shows, do you? I'm not writing love letters to Sandra Lee am I? No, no, no: the two things are very separate. Only now, I'd like to offer you three reasons to watch the premier of Next Food Network Star Season 4 this Sunday night at 10: 1. I interviewed the entire cast when they arrived their very first day and interviewed each of them as they got kicked off, so I can answer all of your questions as the show progresses; (you can see my interviews with all the cast members here); 2. After each episode, we're going to post a "viewing party" on The FN Dish where you get to hear my immediate reaction as well as that of my co-host and friend, Food Network's newest star, Sunny Anderson. (Sunny, by the way, has a really fun blog--check it out here.) 3. At the end of every episode, you'll see a commercial on-air featuring me in a blue sweater. Isn't that reason enough? You can be sitting there with your friends and family and say, "Hey, I know that guy!" or, at the very least, "Hey! I read his blog!" Enjoy the weekend and see you guys on-air this Sunday night!...
The Vegas Episode
Happy Memorial Day! For your entertainment today, we have a very special FN Dish featuring Lorraine Bracco, Todd English, Barbara Fairchild, Wolfgang Puck, Daniel Boulud, Guy Savoy, Cat Cora and many many more living the lush life at Vegas Uncorked. To read more about Vegas Uncorked, read my posts here and here. Enjoy!...
Umami & Morimoto
[To comment or embed on your site, click here!]...
Mary Nolan, Fear of Softball and a Sneak Peek
Hello folks. Just got back from Vegas last night and hit the bed like a bullet. This morning, though, you shall be entertained by my most taxing FN Dish episode thus far. This may shock you, but my whole life I've been terrified of sports--especially baseball where I am convinced that one day, sitting there in the bleachers, I'll get hit in the head. I overcame my fears this week to hang out with Mary Nolan, a new Food Network star, who took me to one of her softball games (click here to watch the episode). Otherwise, tonight I shall regale you with stories from the rest of my Vegas trip, but if you want to see a sneak peek photo set of my cookoff with Lorraine Bracco click here. Isn't that a cool picture? More soon.......
The Grilling Episode
You were probably wondering where the music was last week. Well, I had something up my sleeve: this week's episode of the FN Dish (click here) features a song written and performed by yours truly. Again, this week is a quirkier Adam-like episode so hopefully fans of last week's will enjoy this too. And if you love it, please link to it, e-mail it, embed it on your blog. Thanks!...
VEGAS
This Food Network gig is wild, baby. On Wednesday, they're flying me out to Vegas to cover Bon Appetit's Vegas Uncorked, a culinary and wine festival featuring some of the most famous, important chefs alive (Wolfgang Puck, Daniel Boulud, Lorraine Bracco). The craziest part? On Saturday night I'm hosting a V.I.P. party by the pool of a flashy hotel and we have TWO extra tickets to give away. Are you or anyone you know going to be in Vegas next Saturday the 10th? Let me know in the comments, make sure to leave your e-mail address too, and you can glam it up with me and my posse by the pool. Meanwhile, everyone else: where should we eat in Vegas? Anything we should do off the beaten path? Your advice is much appreciated!...
The Food Blogger Episode
This week's FN Dish may be my favorite so far. First of all, it's the first one I actually wrote as a script--so it has a lot more of my voice in it, something that many of you may have felt was missing. Second of all, it features three of my favorite bloggers: Ed Levine from Serious Eats, Luisa Weiss from The Wednesday Chef and Amanda Kludt from Eater. Thirdly, we have a special celebrity guest from America's Next Top Model. Plus, you learn all about food blogging and starting a food blog. So make sure to click the link above or click here or just type in www.fndish.com and go that way. Once you're there: rate it, leave comments and if you love it embed it on your blog. And if you want to know more about starting a food blog, check out my essays: How To Start a Food Blog, More Blogging Advice, and How To Make Your Food Blog Popular....
Chinatown & Alton Brown
Check out this week's episode of The FN Dish (click here) in which we bring two of Alton Brown's biggest fans to meet him at a book signing and then go to Chinatown with Jennifer 8. Lee, author of The Fortune Cookie Chronicles. In the comments you can enter to win a copy of either Alton's or Jennifer's books, so check out the rules beneath the video. And, eventually, you can read about my attempt at wok cooking here, once they put my post up. Also: we shot the video at Bonnie Slotnick's Cookbook Store in the West Village. If you're coming to New York and you love cookbooks, you have to make a trip there. Bonnie is the best....
Duck Duck Dinner Party
For the longest time, I've been meaning to make the duck recipe from Amanda Hesser's "Cooking For Mr. Latte" and now I have: you can see the recipe in action on this week's FN Dish (click here) and then read about how it all went down by reading the attached blog post here. Make sure to answer the Question of the Week: What's your favorite kitchen gadget? But don't do it here, do it there. I'm turning off comments here so you leave them there. Thanks!...
Is there any food at Food Network?
Find out by clicking here!...
I Met Alice Waters
It's been difficult to keep this a secret, but today I finally get to tell you: when we were in Miami, I had the privilege of going to a farmer's market with Alice Waters. It all happened rather comically. When I met Alice at the childhood obesity panel, I asked her how she ate when she travelled--if she could stick to her ideological guns at an airport food court or at a hotel restaurant. She told me she travels with her oils and other cooking equipment so that wherever she goes she can visit the local market and make herself the kind of food she wants to eat. "Could we go with you to a farmer's market?" I rather pushily asked. And she kindly answered: "Of course." This week's FN Dish (click here) is the result: a tour of a Miami farmer's market with Alice Waters, as well as a visit to DiFara Pizza with Food Network's newest star, Sunny Anderson. You also get to watch me getting my haircut and nerd out talking about the magic of David Copperfield. It's quite an episode and if that doesn't leave you satisfied, you should click here to learn Alice's secret method for making a perfect omelet. I plan to make one ASAP. P.S. Don't be afraid to embed these videos on your livejournals, facebooks and/or blogs. Especially the omelet one--people will love it! And the embedding code is right there....
