My Big Cali Bite

Hey there! I got back late last night from the California stop on Guy Fieri's Roadshow and spent most of the day resting and preparing for the big snowstorm everyone keeps warning us about up here on the northeast side of the country. I was only there for 24 hours, but I did manage to pack in some fun.

First things first, how neat is it that you can finally wifi during a flight? I can never sleep for a long period of time on a flight and just loved surfing around while I was on the way there and back. Right when I landed at LAX all that I could think about was Pico and LaBrea, the corner I had many a meal at and from when I lived in Rancho Cucamonga, CA ... yeah, look that place up, it exists in more than just Next Friday. Ok, so I got to the corner and it was a choice between Roscoe's Chicken and Waffles or my fave Los Angeles taco stand. I decided to go with instant gratification and not wait to be seated or any of that mess, time was of the essence ... I made a run for the stand.
Lucy's, that's the name of it ... funny how I can go there about a jillion times and never think to check the name. I do that often, just like the cheesesteak place in Philadelphia (Max's). I accept my foodie faults, we all have em. Here's a look at Lucy's from across the street.
If you look close or click on the photo to enlarge you can see the ledges on the outside of the street windows, the best thing is to walk up and eat it right there! I just totally love street food. Started back in Germany, followed me through my time in South Korea and it's with me now in Brooklyn. Nice. Ok, here is the other place to eat there ... on the patio.
With only a little wiggle room in my schedule, I chose the drive-thru ...
Where to start ... so much to choose from. Well, here is where I went from memory. For the longest my favorite combination in a burrito is chorizo and bean. No more, no less. I don't even think it's on the menu in that manner, but I always make sure that when I say it the emphasis so on point, they know what I mean. No tomatoes, no cheese, no lettuce. So, just minutes later I had a bag full of goodies and If I weren't alone I would've torn through it in the car. We pulled out of the drive-thru and as we passed Roscoe's I just couldn't help it so I stopped in to see if my fave guy was there and he wasn't so I left a note that I'd stopped by. When I was eating there years ago between taping pilots and having meetings, he'd sit with me occasionally because I was by myself and probably looked lonely. I'd talk to him about my dreams and goals and how I really wanted a cooking show on Food Network. A few years later and here I am. Great to eat somewhere that feels like more than just a business, it has heart.

After thinking mostly about the burrito for the entire ride, I finally got to my hotel room and arranged my long awaited meal ...
That's my baby right there! It comes with chips, salsa and a pickled jalapeno ... just $5 and some change. I set everything up on the coffee table, turned the television to the news and I felt so happy! I forgot to tell you before, when I pulled up to the window to order, I teared up a bit. It took me back to a time when I was struggling in so many different ways and it just felt great to be back under different circumstances. Plus, food is just an emotional thing for me, I LOVE it. There are scents and flavors that take me back to some great places I've been, great memories. There are times I have to control my emotions when taping Cooking for Real because sometimes food and the story behind it is just so emotional. Ever feel like that? Wimpy over food? So anyway, I was happy to be back in my room alone to enjoy the burrito ... I massacred it!
That's halfway through. The chorizo they use has such a unique spice and flavor profile. See the onions? It's spicy, smokey and has a nice sweet note to it. The beans are creamy and not a touch dry, but they have substance too. Just really yummy. The tortilla has a nice chew to it and nothing is soggy, just perfect even after the 15 minute ride to the hotel in West Hollywood.

After I finished I had to get ready for the show so I cleaned up and headed over to the venue. I was excited to meet Robert Irvine because I knew he was going to be on the show, but I walked around to the backstage area to say hi to people prepping the stage for the show and ran into someone else I'd never 'met' ...
It's Jeffrey Saad from this past season of Next Food Network Star! I was a guest on the show twice so I've tasted his food, but we had minimal contact during the taping, because I judged and made comments along with the other guests. He was there to open up for Guy. That's something Guy did in every city, have a local chef come out before him and do a cooking demo. Very cool, he also hosted a pre-show cooking class for young chefs. BTW, did you know Jeffrey still works with Food Network?? He has a show called The Spice Smuggler and there are 4 webisodes available to view. After we chatted and I met his wife, I headed off to find Robert ...
Big guy huh? His muscles are huge!!! He's a really nice guy. Before we went on stage I went to go tell him my version of break a leg which is break a cream sauce and I found him on the floor doing push ups! I told him I was gonna tell, but I've seen guys do this before. It's the pre-shoot or pre-beach pump-up, but does it really work? I don't know, but it looked funny.

About an hour before he goes on Guy does a walk through with everyone in his dressing room. He discusses the order of events, who does what, when we enter the show ... everything. Here he is getting down to business ...
That guy to his left is "Panini", after I met him I told Guy that I want a Knuckle Sandwich nickname, there are so many. Anyway, his whole crew is just the best. Nice, hard working guys. After the pre-show run through we all just broke off into segments to get ready and then when the time was right, we headed on stage for the fun. I came out with a bottle of tequila for the margarita machine and treated it like a baby and cradled it. Then I sang a lil lullaby to it and poured it into the big machine I showed you from the last time I joined Guy. Then Robert headed out with two more bottles to pour in. The ladies really roared for him! Then we all got behind the counter for some cooking ...
Robert and I helped out a bit and left the stage ... but fell before we completely got off stage. It was pretty funny and he fell on top of me, all I could think was for such a big guy, he wasn't that heavy. Anyway, it was such a fun experience and the last show is tonight in Las Vegas at the Hard Rock Hotel. The guys worked so hard and to see them in the beginning and see how the show progressed and they all stayed happy and vibrant, put a smile on my face. Guy announced at the show that he has a game show on the the way with NBC and it's something for the whole family, so look for that in the future!

Ok, time to look out the window and see if there's more snow! Have a great weekend and I'll leave you on a sweet note ...
If you are a cookie monster like me, it's worth clicking this picture and getting some detail. It is THE BEST bakery cookie I've had in years. Can't even tell you the last time I had a non-homemade cookie that was worth talking about. I got this last week at The City Bakery just outside of Union Square in NYC and was a bit upset I had to share it with my guy when I got it home with me. I know it's good when I'm selfish. :-)

Take care and enjoy the rest of your weekend!

The Good, The Bad, The Not So Ugly

*******THIS WAS WRITTEN LAST WEEK WHILE I WAS SICK, THANKS FOR ALL THE WELL WISHES, I'M FEELING BETTER AND HAVE AN EVENT LATER TODAY IN NYC AT CIRCLE OF SISTERS, IF YOU ARE GOING, LOOK FOR ME!********

The Good ...
Well, last Wednesday was the final day of shooting Cooking for Real until I go back in late December to shoot 13 more episodes. You might say to yourself, why not do all 26 in a row instead of breaking it up? Well, there are probably a few reasons. Let's start with the Food Network schedule. Boy, are they busy!! They only have 2 in-house studios. One is Studio B, that's the one I auditioned in and I also shot some interstitials there as well. It's tiny and doesn't fit my Cooking for Real set or all the other things and people needed to tape the show. Then there's Studio A, this is a bigger studio and many other shows shoot there. It's actually where I made my Food Network debut back in 2005 on Emeril Live! It's the workhorse studio that is home to, Guy's Big Bite, Ultimate Recipe Showdown, Iron Chef and my joint. Thing is, they are on a crazy tight shooting cycle, as soon as one show packs up it's time to load in the set for the next show. Before I began this run of 13 shows, I could only do 6 acts a day. There are 4 acts in a half hour show, which means we'd end the day sometimes on one episode and then have to pick it up the next day. This can account for repeated stories in the early runs, it's hard to remember what I say from day to day because I talk so much. So, this time around my producer asked if I thought I could handle 8 acts, or 2 shows a day. I didn't know if I could, but I know I can do things when people believe I can and I can also do things when I try. So, believin' and tryin' is what went down.

Here's Clark fixing one of my newest cooking scars. I have a few ... my favorite is the Pineapple Upside-Down Cake scar. But here he is touching up a scar I'm very proud of as well ... a Frying Donut Holes scar!!! This is after ...


this is before ...


I have no problem showing the scar, I actually like all of them because they remind me of food, but it was a bit distracting according to the team watching behind the camera. So, we doctored it up and I don't think you'll even notice, but just some behind the scenes I thought you may enjoy. I kept forgetting there was makeup on my arm and every time I went to wash hands, or lotion up ... I had to wimper back to Clark and apologize for messing up his masterpiece. It'll be back to normal skin tone in a few weeks ...

Here's Santos cooling off a dish I put in the oven that got too hot to handle. Thing is, the oven turns on automatically because every time I prep something on the counter above it, my chunky leg bumps into it and turns it on. Sometimes we'll put something in the oven and say it's on when it isn't because we need to re-shoot close up shots of it going in before we cook it and lose what it looked like uncooked. Why waste food with a swap when you don't have to, ya know? So we were about to prep for close up shots when we realized the oven was on courtesy of my genetic code for big thighs lol. Look close and take a guess at what he pulled out to cool the handles down ...


The second reason we did half now and will complete the rest in December is, quite like the Food Network studio schedule, my schedule has been crazy lately as well. With shooting specials and being on the road for How'd That Get On My Plate?, I was booked soliddddd. Which brings me to the next ...

The Bad ...
Well, I got news that How'd That Get On My Plate will remain a 13 episode series and will not go into the next season. I really like the show for the content and enjoyed working on it. I met some great people across the country and look forward to working with the network to find another show to work on for the night time audience. The show will continue to run, so catch them! They aren't done yet, just actually did a voice over for the apple episode last week. Thanks to everyone that watched it and sent me comments about it. The support is appreciated!

The Not So Ugly ...
I'm sick, I think it started that last day of shooting and then got worse. So I met up with one of my girl friends Monday and we had lunch at The Clinton Street Baking Company. Wow, on a Monday, there was a 40 minute wait! No problem for me, I hadn't seen my girl in forever and I love a meal you have to wait for. Feels like it's gonna be good ... and it was. Although a wait, doesn't always mean a great meal. Here's my plate ... Huevos Rancheros with the usual suspects plus, Jalapeno Cream and Chorizo.

I think it may have put me on the road to recovery. That's sugar-cured bacon in the top right ... yummified! (yum - eh - fyd) Take it easy and stick around for some more posts now that I'm feelin' better.

Denver Dinin' and Sunnyvale's Shinin' - the marathon post

So, I just wrapped up a lil trip to tape the second and third episodes of How'd That Get On My Plate? First, lemme tell ya about me and traveling. Due to my upbringing as an Army Brat, I'm accustomed to new places and things, but boy do I dislike flying. I can remember throwing up on a government flight from Germany back to the States for a vacation and it's been difficult ever since. Then my crazy self joined the Air Force. The first year was in Korea, so that was cool, flew there and stayed put for a year. Then I got an assignment to produce and write radio news stories for AFNEWS and moved back to San Antonio (my high school city), but almost never was there because the gig required lots n lots of travel. I didn't like it. I mean I loved telling the stories, but they would sometimes come abruptly, like news does, and I'd have to get on a flight and be there. Needless to say my electric bills were teeny tiny some months due to my frequent travel the last 3 years in the Air Force. 

I distinctly remember being rolled into the television department at AFNEWS to go shoot the Holiday Greetings oversees, a 2-3 month trip that included many 1-day stays and living out of the suitcase. I protested, loudly :-) ... I was just exhausted, and a long TDY (that's military lingo for "tour of duty" and means a biz trip) didn't look like fun. It was grueling work I can't even fathom now. We'd break into teams of 3 or four and then break the world up into regions and each team would tour all or many of the bases in that region and we'd tape every single soldier, airman, seaman, or marine saying happy holidays to their families back home. You may have caught the greetings on your local news station or even on the national news around Thanksgiving and Christmas. I mean we taped thousands and thousands of people, sometimes we'd begin taping before the sun rose and ended after it fell. I was young and everyone on my team was older with families and it was always such a lonely trip for me. Our thing to say was we "flew" by some of the nicest places in the world teeheehee ... not much time to sight see. Plus, I always did the Pac-rim trip, the Japan, Guam, Korea, Hawaii leg ... man did I want to do the Germany leg and never got to. So, I say all that to say, after I left the military I thought my frequent flyer miles were over .... Since then, I've gotten better at flying, although being new to NYC just a week before 9/11 gave me a bit of a set back. I always got sick, but now there's anxiety attached. The best thing for me was to be able to plan flying, get relaxed about it and get my mind ready, in the Air Force, I sometimes got very little notice. So far on How'd That Get On My Plate? I'm doin' okay, no throwing up just yet on the flight lol ... but I did drip a tear on landing in Denver. Sucks to tell you cuz it feels wimpy, but if there is someone that dislikes flying that reads this, you have a friend, especially if you fly for work. :-) Okay, on with the post ..... Denver dining ....

I got to Denver on Memorial Day and realized I'd left my flat-iron at home, so first thing's first I needed to find a spot to buy one ... on the way to Walgreen's on the 16th Street mall I saw a Sally's and stopped there. Then looked down the street and saw Chili's ... yaaaaaaay! Don't look at me crazy, the hood I live in has no fast food places, much less the semi fast food of places like TGIF and Chili's. I mean we have a kosher Subway, but you can't get cheese on your sandwich and there's a kosher Dunkin' Donuts, but you can't get cheese on the croissanwich. I need cheese. Funny enough, I didn't get anything from Chili's that was cheese and meat combined, but I still felt like I was livin' on the wild side! Plus, have you ever had their SW eggrolls? They are yummy, even with the corn. I also must tell you about my Taco Bell thing, look ... it was right there on the 16th Street mall as well and lemme tell ya, my second paying job ever was at Taco Bell, so it's in my system. I was waaaaay too excited to find one within walking distance from my hotel!!! I did it two days in a row and woke up the next morning like, ok ... today I'll do something different. We get to the parking lot of Lamar's Donuts and off in the distance courtesy of my Lasik, I see a sign in the sky ... SONIC!!!! I immediately knew what I wanted for lunch! Donuts for breakfast of course. Here's a shot of Jamie, me and Dellgosh ... he was the master donut maker and trains people at all the stores, so he was there to give me the lowdown on Lamar's Donuts. Here we are smilin' away ... sugar does that.



Anyway, after a morning of donut making, the crew was all into getting lunch from this other place, complete with shrimp and pasta and food that was way too fancy for lunch for me ... I wanted SONIC! Oh, wait, I forgot to tell you ... Sonic was the 1st paying job I ever had. Yeah, so it was pretty neat to get done with Taco Bell, the 2nd spot I'd worked at and the next morning run into my 1st fast food love, Sonic. Also, people in the NYC area will feel my pain ... they run Sonic commercials here all the time and every single time they run, I'll log on and see if finally a Sonic is in the area .... and every time, I'm let down. Have you seen the new one with the fries and shake joke?? Hilarious to me, anyway .... I had a Cherry Limeade and Onion Rings and almost lost my mind when there was no ketchup in the bag! lol ...don'tcha hate it when that happens? Luckily, the donut shop had ketchup, go figure. I know you are like, just rings and a drink? No burger or coney?? Nope, it was all I could do to save prime real estate in my belly after working the morning in the donut kitchen. At lunch time my tummy space was at a premium. I had the equivalent of about 5-6 donuts. Lemme tell ya, I'm gonna gain some pounds with this gig if I don't watch it because people offer free food left and right and sometimes the foodie in you HAS to try it. Like who wouldn't try several donuts fresh from the fryer? I tried several flavors in several different states of production, before glaze, after glaze, no glaze, with sprinkles, no sprinkles, toppings, fillings, you name it I tried it if it was offered and then some. Then that night the suits from the production company wanted to do dinner. I was like eat after a day of over eating? Sure ... we ate at Rioja in Denver, just off the 16th Street Mall. Here's what I had ...



Brioche Crusted Sea Scallops, organic brussel sprouts, crispy smoked prosciutto, lemon creme fraiche, pistachio pistou.
The salad dressing or pistou (think pesto, i'm sure that's the derivative) was yummy ... pistachios made it perfect. This is an entree I asked to be made into an appetizer portion. Then ...


Candied Lemon Gnocchi, butter poached crab, shaved asparagus, fava beans, grape tomatoes, tarragon herb salad, Moutere Grove organic olive oil emulsion.
The asparagus were yummy, but cut in a manner that made it difficult to get on a fork, very thin and very long at an angle. Pretty, but hard to eat.


And another chef that knows we like our black pepper and we don't want to wait for someone to come by and offer it with a grinder they don't know how to use. Ever try to get them to loosen it to give you coarse pepper? It should be in the waiter handbook, how to use a grinder, right? Anyway, I'm a sucker for the teeny bowls on the table.


Now, can I speak freely? My scallops were gritty and there was a big chunk of shell in the butter poached crab meat. Lemme tell ya though, the crab meat was soooo good that even though my tummy was stuffed from a full day of eating, I searched every shred out on my plate for consumption, a little shell wasn't gonna stop me. It's just I'm sitting there having a great conversation with the people I've just met, who wants to break the flow by asking for not only the scallops to go back, but the gnocchi with crab meat as well? Plus, it takes plenty for me to send back a plate ... I think I'd only send back an improperly cooked steak. I mean that is something to get mad about, not a kitchen prepper that can't clean seafood properly. That's just me, and heck now that I think about it ... I just recently had a steak in NYC that was killed in a bad way by the chef. It was totally overcooked and  I sat there and tried to eat the tough piece of meat and never said a word. What is wrong with me? Do I need to send food back? It really feels weird to do. Help me if you have those issues. I'd much rather not eat something and say I was full to the waiter than tell them what I found wrong with it. Come to think of it, the gnocchi was a bit too salty as well. O my, what is wrong with me? I dine on tacos and onion rings and then complain about scallops lol. Okay, anyway ...the company at dinner was great. 

Then the next day we all headed out to a chicken farm in the sticks, I mean faaaar from anything. No food to eat, just chickens to pet ... take a look ... 


Okay, these chickadees were just 2 weeks old so they needed heat to feel warm ... hence my sweat. The make up artist kept trying to dab me, I was like just give up ... it's okay to be sweaty in a sweaty situation ... the chick was so sweet, when I let go to put it back down it didn't want to leave my hand. real cute.


And this is a hen about 24 weeks old and egg-baring age :-). I got a close up with no flash, she moved her head and I ended up with a prettier pic i think. Picked her up too, she was a sweetie. All her friends were pecking at my plastic bag wrapped feet. Reflexology on the farm!

Then, when we broke for lunch I was very interested to see just what we'd run into. Turns out even though we were in the stix, Sara who works on the production is like a chick I remember from a Seinfeld episode. Remember the one where Jerry was dating this girl that could get the impossible done? Remember she got tickets to a sold out show with just a smile? Anyway, our Sara has this gift, heck she got us on a farm behind a biosecure door, all I had to do was put on a blue suit ... big whoop, gimme tha suit!! So, anyway, even though we were faaaaaar from civilization, she managed to get a place to deliver lunch faaaar outside it's delivery zone. And boy was it good. You ever have something to eat where right as you bring it to your face to chomp on you are hit with the aroma of it??? That's Jimmy John's sandwiches. I mean this was a sandwich that had the freshest bread and boy did it smell fresh, just yeasty and yummy. Then the bread was chewy and light and airy all at once. Bread can really mess up a sandwich as was foreshadowing for the Sunnyvale, CA leg of the road trip... Take a look at the box each of our lunches came in too ... really cute, with chips, a cookie and a pickle.


Makes me feel like a kid to get a boxed lunch. Like it like that from In & Out Burger in cali too...


 All I could think was yaaaay cheese and meat together!!! I got the #12 Beach Club, Fresh baked turkey breast, provolone cheese, avocado spread, sliced cucumber, sprouts, lettuce, tomato, and mayo! (It's the real deal and it ain't even California.) 

THAT'S HOW THE FOOD DESCRIPTION LOOKS ON THE MENU PARENTHESIS AND ALL :-)


Turns out it was the owner that did the delivery too, really cool dude. Now you ready for this??? Remember how I was saying I'd kinda run the Taco Bell out in 2 days and knew I needed a change? I was just saying to myself, wonder if I can find something within walking distance just like the Taco Bell. So, the next day after the yummy and perfect Jimmy John's lunch I needed to get something from Walgreen's that was on the same street as Taco Bell ... and what do I see right next to Taco Bell??????



Yes, a Jimmy John's sandwich spot, right there on the left and it was right there all along. Isn't that so true in life? I left Taco Bell thinkin' ok, this is it, I gotta find another place and right next to it was a place that made yummy sandwiches. It was so funny I had to take a pic. Only thing is, the next day was a travel day to Cali. So, no more Jimmy John's, but at least I know where to get a good sandwich next time I'm in town.

Ok, on to California to talk strawberries. I knew from my teeny stint in the Inland Empire area that strawberries grow very well in Cali. We went to Sunnyvale which is significantly north of where I'd lived before, but still the perfect climate for strawberries. We got there on a Friday evening and immediately decided to catch dinner in town. Now usually before I eat at new places I google search to death and also go to a few foodie websites to check the reviews, this time I had no time. We decided on Tarragon and hopped in the car for the short trip from our hotel. All the internet time I got was to do a quick menu scan which turned up a drink I wanted to try. The Cherry Life Saver. Look, I'm a 7&7 drinker if it's not beer, but I'll try a new drink, just like food. Plus the name was catchy. We all took a sip of mine because I couldn't quite put my finger on it, but it was not a Life Saver flavor ... we all decided it was more like cherry Nyquil. That was before the food got there, I settled on 2 beers and ate this ...


Cowboy Bone-In Blackened Rib Eye Steak, Pointe Reyes Bleu and Onion Strings.
Cooked perfectly, I always ask for "medium rare, closer to rare".

and then after all the eating, laughing and NBA.com refreshes on my pda for real-time play-off scores ... our director/producer decided to give the Cherry Life Saver another go because it had watered down a bit ... turns out after time the flavors mellowed and the Nyquil flavor morphed into a Hawaiian Punch flavor! Now that's a drink I can work with! lol ... here's the watered down pic ....


Cherry Life Saver turned Kicked up Hawaiian Punch ... I'd call it "H Punch Drunk" teeheehee

So, If ya like Hawaiian Punch and want it with a kick, go to a bar and ask for a watered down Cherry Life Saver teeheehee. Service was relaxed at Tarragon, probably because the whole town was relaxed. Really cool ... on the short restaurant row we went to there were 2 other herb-named eateries. Basil and Turmeric. I think if I had to go with one herb inspired name for a place it'd be Sage. I think. The next day we headed out to the sticks again for acres and acres of strawberries. Now this was pretty cool food-wise. We stopped at a farm that had rows and rows of expiramental strawberries. From the tart to the extra sweet and can I tell ya my foodie friend? I ate as much as I could!!! Dirt and all. Plus, breaking news!!! They are currently working on harvesting white and pink strawberries!!!! I only got that info when asking about golden raspberries, I was like if you can have those, why not different colored strawberries and the strawberry geneticist gave me the news!!! Yes, you read that right, dude had a PhD in Strawberry Genetics. Word. I ate and ate and ate those top secret berries and hope the sweetest one I ate makes it to the market. Thing is, sweetness isn't the only thing they look for it's also the right balance of shelf life. So, I took care of that and shelved them into my mouth!!! Then for lunch, all the field workers were getting nothing but the best from the taco truck ... so you know that's what I wanted. I used to make up excuses to leave work when I was at AFNEWS so me and a coworker could go to the gate for the base and get some tacos from the place that sold them there. I am a taco truck junkie. Everyone else was duped into sandwiches, but I went with the unpopular route and asked for some taco truck tacos and dined on the finest of chorizo and bean while the sandwich takers complained about the bad bread that ruined their day. Remember how I said Jimmy John's sandwich bread just made my day?? I think part of my reason for not wanting a sandwich in cali was cuz the one in colo was just perfect! Why mess with an immediate good memory? Like really can I get the perfect sandwich twice in one week?? I didn't think so and the cali sandwich was being much publicized by a local, I just didn't buy into the pitch. Felt a bit set-up if you feel me. The guys on the crew said they thought the bread would be good because we were close to San Francisco which is famous for it's sour dough. We'll have to go to the bay for that ... their bread left them feeling empty, my tortillas were right on the money! When in Rome baby!!! Thing is we were all filled to the brim with fresh strawberries anyway. Ok, then just as we finished eating lunch ... the sun came out!!! Just in time for me to deliver a line to the camera about loving sorbet on a warm day, need the sunshine for that visual and we got it!!  That was Saturday, flew back Sunday and today ... I'm grocery shopping, my fridge looks a mess. I made a chocolate pudding pie last night with peanut butter chips, gonna whip up some whip cream later and indulge. Other than that, boy am I happy to be home, but boy did I have a good time on the road. 3 shows down, 10 more to tape. Happy Monday!!!

What I Had For "LINNER" (lunch+dinner) aka brunch's cuzo

So this was easy and a quickie before i vacuum packed up some beef and chorizo today. it's rustic and simple. i always buy meat on like mondays or tues and then know the bulk of it won't get eaten until my dude comes to hang out for the weekend. so i froze most of the protien and i kept 2 chorizo links out.

all i did was chunk up some sweet onion, 1 roma tomato(prolly coulda used two, but i was a bit lazy), about 6 fingerling potatoes sliced in half, 3 shitake mushroom caps-sliced (again, coulda used more, i was in a choppin hurry), 1 jalapeno-sliced, 1 garlic clove-chopped, 3 sprigs of thyme, salt, pepper, garlic salt, butter, oil, and a bit of water, put the links sans casing on top and covered it up with good ol mr. reynold's and did a 350 degree oven for about 30, then uncovered for a bit more ... wish i would've put in one of those par-baked rolls towards the end, i bought em last week and keep forgetting to throw em in the oven. argh! would've sopped up the juices real nice ....

ever get a really good chorizo? i miss the chorizo in Texas ... i mean i've found some good places in nyc, but if anyone can tell me where to get some tex-mex chorizo ... you know with the orange grease???? i think i'd make a chorizo celebration cake teeheehee ... yeah, i gotta tell you about celebration cake one day. and i know chorizo is traditionally breakfast for some, but really, why are there rules for when i can eat something tasty? ok, enjoy Linner ... 2moro, i'm gonna post some behind the scenes flicks from my show and give ya a preview of the kitchen :-) ...