Have you heard... I'm a baller.

I am sure that most of my dedicated readers are shocked by that subject line.  They all know the last time I really played any kind of organized sport was when I played basketball in 8th grade.  Even though Pound High School isn't known as a hotbed for potential collegiate stars, we had a pretty impressive lineup that year.  Myself and five of my team mates were well over 6 feet tall.  The odd thing is that we spent most of our time riding the bench.  After watching a few games, my Dad surmised that the coach was really into dribble wizards under 5 feet tall.  Lost an embarrassing number of games that year.  Never played any kind of team sport ever again.  So how is it that I am a baller?

It is really more a reflection of my baking style than my athletic prowess (or lack thereof).  I am just not really into any kind of kneading, rolling, or cutting.  All the cookie recipes I use involve forming dough balls - occasionally rolled in sugar and/or cinnamon - arranging them on the pan a suitable distance apart and baking until they are just right.  I have become somewhat adept with a small scoop and my own two hands.  I can crank cookies out quickly and consistently.  Just don't ask me to do frosted sugar cookie cut-outs.  I have a number of different types of rolling pins and cookie cutters of all shapes and sizes.  I just prefer not to bother with those extra steps.  So I figure that makes me a baller.  (chortle)


The tendency to avoid the rolling pin and cutter is also why I am a big fan of Pillsbury Southern Style Biscuits in the freezer section of my favorite local grocer.  I would be more than happy to mix up some kind of biscuit dough, but most recipes require the aforementioned detestable rolling and cutting. This past weekend, I decided to go a little outside my comfort zone.  Even though I had a healthy supply of Pillsbury biscuits in the freezer, I opted instead to break out the bag of The Loveless Cafe biscuit mix in the pantry.  My lovely wife bought it on her last trip to Nashville.  We both love the biscuits and fried chicken at The Loveless Cafe.  I spotted the biscuit mix myself in the gift shop (when picking up some country ham).  I just realized even with the mix, it might be a bridge too far for me to try and replicate their moist and fluffy biscuits at home.  She didn't really read the package instructions before buying.  So the bag has been in the pantry for several months. 

I am here to report that I survived the experience without too much difficulty.  A small batch didn't require the use of a full size rolling pin.  I used the non-stick Pampered Chef pastry roller that I typically use to roll my homemade egg noodles.  I think I may have rolled them a little too thin, as I had more biscuits than the recipe projected.  And they went a bit longer than anticipated in the oven.  This may have been due to not pre-heating the cast iron pan long enough.  Even with these hiccups, they turned out delicious.  Perfect with some salted sweet cream butter and homemade peach freezer jam. (sigh of contentment)

I am not sure this represents some watershed moment that will permanently alter my culinary tendencies, but maybe I won't be quite so afraid of the rolling pin and cookie cutter in the future.  In the meantime, here is a picture of the biscuits along with the rest of our Sunday brunch menu.  Yes, that is fried spam.  We are in the midst of a national emergency.  Spam is a great emergency ration.  Not that it matters, but it is the reduced sodium variety.  Still tastes as good as it did when I was just a kid. 

Yes, those are tiny biscuits, but the recipe called for
a 2" cutter.  May go bigger next time.

I am curious to hear from my dedicated readership about what you have been dishing up in your kitchen to get through this time of staying at home way more than usual.   Anything you and yours  find particularly comforting?  Are you going outside your comfort zone too?  Maybe using only ingredients on hand rather than making a last-minute trip to the store?  

Please share in the comments section.  In the meantime, I pray that you are staying safe and healthy through it all.

Your Dining Scout and Shadetree Chef,
Michael Hurd - aka Big Mike

The Loveless Cafe Store
https://store.lovelesscafe.com/

Have you heard... I still like to kick it old school...

I know that one may conjure up a number of different scenarios upon hearing the phrase "kicking it old school."  In my case, what this means is that I still prefer to do things like we did back in the 80's.  Though I do text and email, I would much rather talk to someone in person or on the phone.  And while I can learn from watching any number of online videos recorded by professionals of every stripe, I still favor a hands-on lesson taught in person by a good friend or colleague.  That is why many moons ago I called my good friend Mike Renn (aka Mad Dog) and asked him to teach me how to make sausage.  Mike and I had only known each other for a short time, but what connected us is something that spans decades.  Mike and I met through our mutual membership in the Purdue Trap and Skeet Team.  He was one of the founding members and I fell into my spot on the "B Team" maybe 20 years later.  We both learned from the same legendary coach Dr. Charles (Chuck) Rhykerd.  I could write an entire post on the benefits of his coaching and how it extends far beyond the clay target sports, but I will save that for another day.  I am sure if Coach were still here with us, watching our clay target skills in action... He would question aloud exactly what we think we learned from him?  Jokingly, of course. 

Though the Purdue Trap and Skeet Team was the start of my friendship with Mike, it is our mutual love of food - both cooking and eating - that made him a best friend forever.  Long before he was a student at Purdue, he was learning how to cut, grind, season, stuff, and smoke sausage.  I am sure he learned A LOT about animals and how they become food as a student at Purdue and in his 40 plus year career.  Though I am also sure he would say he learned the most important aspects of meat craft as a young child.  What's not to love about a guy who was wearing a butcher's apron before he learned to ride a bike?  (big smile)

Please join me for a quick (side) trip in the way back machine....  You see...  Mike grew up in Trenton, New Jersey and he lived next door to the Tindik family.  I bet if you grew up in Trenton back in the day, you would have fond memories of the John Tindik & Sons Hungarian Butcher Shop at 130 Home Avenue too.  I think of them and that place with a warm smile and I never met any of them much less visited there.  The three Tindik brothers and their wives - John & Mary, Joe & Katherine, and Louie & Lillian - owned and operated the grocery and butcher shop that was a social hub for the local Slavic community.  Sisters Helen Hanusi, Jules Linzenbold, and Anna Oros helped out at the store over the years too.  The Tindik family enterprise included a meat packing operation located in Bordentown, New Jersey, where they processed the meat they would package and sell in the store.  The Tindik's even rendered their own lard. 

Being good neighbors,  Mike's Dad (Stephen) and his Grandparents (Michael and Helen) worked the store on Friday nights and Saturdays.  The Tindik's signature sausage was Hungarian Kolbaz and they made it from an old family recipe.  Though it was sold year-round, it was in particularly high demand around Easter and Christmas.  It was not unusual for them to make and sell a thousand pounds of sausage a week during those holidays.  It was here that Mike learned how to craft great sausage working alongside his family and his neighbors.  Even though I have never met any member of the Tindik family, I am proud to say their star pupil is now imparting those childhood lessons to me.  I count it as a blessing to be able to carry on their tradition in my community of Columbus, Ohio.  

I am sure I am not the only one who gets excited learning how to properly employ a 50 year-old meat grinder and an over 100-year-old sausage stuffer.  Maybe I am just hopeful that I am not the only one.  (nervous chuckle)  That is why when Mike called me last month and asked if I had time to join him in making another batch of sausage, I told him I was all in.  It had been awhile since he showed me the first time and I figured I would benefit from further instruction.  Unfortunately for those of you in the select group that is eager to watch and learn the art of sausage making, Mike doesn't offer any formal classroom instruction program with online registration.  I bet if you called and asked him nicely though, he just might let you join in the next time we make a batch of the Tindik family's legendary Hungarian Kolbaz.  I say the next time we make it because I am hoping he keeps inviting me too.  I am a slow learner sometimes and it can take me several lessons to really get it right.  If we're lucky, he will tell the story of how he earned the nickname Mad Dog.  It seems my social hub is where the sausage is made rather than where it is sold.  (earnest grin)

As a special treat, I invite my dedicated readers to sample for yourselves.  If you are in Columbus and tasting that delicious sausage in your mind... Just give me a call.  I will hook you up with a tasty plate full.  Might even break out a loaf of Lucky Cat pumpernickel rye and some Polish sweet and sour cabbage to go with it.  Mmmmmm.  Now I'm hungry.  Are you?

Your Dining Scout and Shadetree Chef,
Michael Hurd-  aka Big Mike

Mike used this grinder when he worked at Smitty's
 Market in West Lafayette during his days at Purdue.
  Thankfully, the owners let him keep it.

If you ever wondered what more than 100 pounds
of sausage looks like...  Wonder no more.

After cutting, grinding, seasoning, and mixing...
Mike rang the dinner bell...  He knows how
to treat a USDA Prime beef brisket too.

I campaigned for this job.  Mixing a large batch of sausage is
way more fun that it looks. 

Stuffing all that sausage was more than a two person job.  Our other
 helpers were Mike's wife Cyndi and his cousin Neil. If they hadn't
 helped, we might still be hard at work three days later.  

Smoke 'em if you got 'em.  And what you've
got here is the first 25 pounds we smoked.
Six hours in the smoke for each batch.
Finished on Sunday evening.

 

Have you heard... My mother still watches what I eat...

Say hello to my new breakfast buddy.  Her name is
Wendy.  

I suspect that the subject line is not at all surprising to most.  It is likely the truth for many more than would care to admit it.  My mother has always monitored my consumption, perhaps even more so since my Dad had bypass surgery and she educated herself on heart-healthy dietary guidelines.  I count it as a blessing that she still cares about me as though I am a child.  I'll remind myself of that after she reads this.  She won't be the only person to counsel me after reading this either.  I won't name any of the others, but you know who you are.  (Sam)

I can only hope that my dear readers appreciate the sacrifice I made this morning on their collective behalf.  You see, Wendy's launched their new breakfast menu this week.  I decided today to sample it and share the results.  I will offer the disclaimer that I have always been a fan of Wendy's, in particular The Baconator.  Living in Columbus, I also consider Wendy's to be a local joint.  Dave Thomas saw fit to launch his great enterprise here a couple of years before I was born.  I have vague recollections from my later grade school years of visiting a Wendy's location once they started to expand into other states.  Fortunately, my palate has grown up in the ensuing years.  Sometime around my 14th year I was finally willing to eat a cheeseburger.  It was around that time I believe the American fast-food scene discovered the joy of the bacon cheeseburger.  Back then I was on a school field trip to visit the Oak Ridge Nuclear Laboratory and the scheduled lunch stop was at a Hardee's somewhere along the route.  I was crushed to discover this particular Hardee's location didn't offer my go-to sandwich at that time - the hot ham and cheese.  Rather than go hungry, I took a chance and tried a bacon cheeseburger and found I enjoyed it.  If not for that singular experience, I might still be living in the darkness of a cheeseburger-less life.  (earnest grin)

I'm sure I have wondered aloud more than once what The Baconator might taste like if it were translated into a breakfast offering.  I am embarrassed to reveal I have made many a breakfast sandwich over the years, but have never even tried to make a Breakfast Baconator.  (sheepish grin)  I am glad Wendy's has finally satisfied my casual curiosity.  I don't normally use sports analogies, but since Wendy's earliest menu theme was baseball oriented...  I will declare the Breakfast Baconator Combo... A.  Grand.  Slam.  Home.  Run.  The sandwich itself was a delectable combination of egg, sausage, (lots of) bacon, cheese, and a Wendy's original sauce served on a grilled bun.  I know many would consider it sacrilege to serve a breakfast sandwich on something other than a biscuit or English muffin, but I think in this case the grilled bun is the right call.  The seasoning overall was not what I would call spicy, but it was just a little peppery.  I am not sure if it was black pepper in the sausage, bacon, or egg...  I just know that I thoroughly enjoyed it.  I also know others - such as my wife - may not.  This is why I feel it important to mention.  As good as it was, I would consider the sandwich just a triple.  It was the seasoned breakfast potatoes that made it a home run.  They were pleasantly seasoned, perfectly crispy on the outside, and moist and fluffy on the inside.  The seasoning tasted like breakfast to me.  What else could possibly improve this meal any further?   I know carbonated-beverages are not something I usually drink for breakfast, but couldn't resist Dave's Original Cherry Cream Soda on the fountain.  If you are wondering, I did get a refill before leaving.  WOW!   Not sure how long this has been on the fountain at Wendy's, but it may supplant Strawberry Lemonade as my favorite.  Time will tell.  No offense to Denny's, but GRAND SLAM is the only way to describe this breakfast.  

If you haven't already, I encourage you to get out of bed a little earlier than usual and find your nearest Wendy's before breakfast ends at 10:30 am.  I plan to branch out and sample the other breakfast offerings in the coming weeks.  Please check back for these future installments.  Better yet, let me know if you give it a try.  I welcome your observations.  I am not sure who in your life might work you over in the event of such conspicuous consumption, but here are a few defenses I intend to use:

     1.  I don't eat like this for every meal.  
     2.  Life is all about choices and I chose to eat this and skip lunch today.  
     3.  I wandered around Menard's for a good long while afterwards to get in a few thousand extra 
          steps.  
     4.  I sacrificed myself solely for the benefit of my dedicated readers.  

The good news is that the Wendy's breakfast will help fortify me for my mission tomorrow.  I will be traveling over to Plain City for an all-day sausage making clinic courtesy of my good friend Mike aka Mad Dog.  We will be making Polish Sausage and Mike's legendary Hungarian Kolbasz.  If I haven't mentioned before, he owns a grinder that is over 50 years old and a sausage stuffer that is over 100.  I am totally geeked about it.  I could hardly contain my excitement when I went to GFS to pick up the 90 pounds of bone-in pork butt earlier today.  It was 20 pounds more than I expected.  Perhaps they are playing Sir Mix-A-Lot in the barn nowadays because these are some big butts.  (uncontrollable laughter)  I am sure to write more about it soon.  

Your Dining Scout and Shadetree Chef,
Michael Hurd aka Big Mike

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