Holy Mackerel!

Shelter Island Fishing Pier, 0700, a man, his fishing pole and a weird guy with an axe. I caught 6 good sized Mackerel! I used what they call a Sibeki rig, which is just a jig with 4 hooks and squid as bait. Actually the weird guy with the axe gave me some Mackerel that he had as bait too and that seemed to work even better. Anyway it was the first time I caught anything at that pier so I was pretty happy. I ended up marinating the fish in soy, mirin, garlic, ginger and green onions then throwing it on the grill. Jen and I really enjoyed it! Bear woke up last night so we brought him down while we were eating and gave him some, I think he liked it too! I tried my best to clean the grill last night so it would not smell like fish but I don’t think it was enough. We will find out cause tonight im going to grill some Tri-tip and hopefully it does not come out fishy tasting or smelling. I might have to buy a small hibachi type grill on the side just for fish. So enjoy the pictures!

Rotisserie Chicken

This was an undertaking. For a while Jen and I have been trying to utilize our Rotisserie attachment for our grill. Well after the move we could not locate all the pieces for the thing. We had the big sword and rotary motor but could not find the claws to hold the chicken in place on the sword. Then we found the claws to complete the thing but could not remember how to assemble the whole rig on the gill so that it would rotate properly. Finally after some trial and error and me swinging the whole sword assembly around  (with chicken on it)  screaming with tears in my eyes and Jen burning herself trying to align everything and truss the bird while it was over the burner so it would spin evenly, just threw the thing on there and closed the lid for an hour and a half. By the time it was done I had just about written the thing off but came out with a beautiful golden brown bird. I was impressed and will be doing the whole process again once the opportunity arises, and Jen’s burns heal 

Pizza time

I tried to make a tomato, mozzarella and basil pizza tonite.  Let's just say the photos turned out better then the actual taste of the pizza. But then again it was my first time making dough. So I cut myself some slack. The first pic is the pizza before the oven and the second is after it baked. I think next time I'll have to go with a Boboli crust.

-Mike

Wine Time

This isn't a recipe but it is food related...sort of. A studio photo shoot I did the other day for the cover of an upcoming special section for the newspaper for an upcoming wine festival. Salut!

A website worth sharing

SO excited to find this website!  Shipping is free with any order over 10 bucks and you get a free 1 oz spice sample of your choice with any purchase and if you spend 20 bucks you get 4oz of applewood smoked sea salt.  Their prices are fantastic!  Selection is AMAZING!  Check it out!

http://www.myspicesage.com

Pot Roast for the one I love

 

I do not have many heroes. For the ones I have, this is the dish I would prepare for them to showcase my cooking skills as well as show them my appreciation. Jen did not feel well today, she had a massive migraine that forced us to have to go to urgent care because it was that bad. She needed medical attention, and a comforting meal. She is definitely one of my heroes and I wanted her to have a comforting meal when the day wound down and kiddos were already sound asleep. The flavors of this pot roast were further concentrated after I made a roux and added the drippings from the meat and vegetables after they cooked for over two hours to make the gravy. I am very proud of this dish and discovered that my favorite way to cook is to braise a big old hunk of meat for a long time in a lot of wine. Enjoy!

My Version of Otter Pops

I’m so tired of giving the kids the otter pops that are loaded with sugar and food coloring.  They always want at least two each.  Not only is it not good for them, it’s not good for my laundry!  Shirts and dresses stained with the not-from-nature blues and reds.  So, I got creative with my Foodsaver, and made my own version.  I got the highest compliment, that mine were the best ever!