Masterchef.com/* » chris

Masterchef Australia Casting - Good luck mate!

chris — Sun, 21 Dec 2008 21:09:19 +0000

Recently I noticed a large influx of visitors from downunder and all asking me the same thing.

“How do I sign up for Masterchef Australia?”

Well , we are not affiliated in any way with the show, but here is the link. Good luck!

https://masterchef.fmacasting.com.au

The closing date for applications is 9 January 2009.

You can still get your own blogs and let us know how your journey goes.

Watonga Cheese Festival - Oct 10-11, 2008 Watonga, OK

chris — Sun, 28 Sep 2008 20:11:59 +0000

I am proud to announce that, after a years absence due to severe weather damage to the cheese factory, the world famous Watonga Cheese Festival is on once again.

But I can tell you that the culinary events don’t just happen on the two coasts. Ladies and gentlemen, I am proud to announce that, after a years absence due to severe weather damage to the cheese factory, the world famous Watonga Cheese Festival is on once again.

Evidently a storm in August 07 damaged the cheese factory and the residents canceled the festival, this year the factory is still closed - damages where extensive, and repairs are still underway, but the party is on!

Follow the link.
http://www.watongacheesefestival.com/

Virtuoso who can not taste

chris — Sun, 20 Jul 2008 00:40:53 +0000

The Guardian has an interesting article about a chef that after being lauded as one of the pioneers of ” Molecular Gastronomy” overcame tongue cancer to bounce back to produce some of Chicago’s finest cuisine.
Anyone over in the windy city able to vouch for his goods? Sounds like a real struggle and I commend him for keeping a chin up approach on what must be a devastating issue. Like a deaf composer or blind painter , not having the facility to taste and be a chef would be difficult.
Having quality help probably goes a long way to his success and a big hats off should be expressed to the fellow chefs in his brigade.

Link here

The chef with no taste

‘Molecular gastronomer’ Grant Achatz was riding high as one of America’s most celebrated and original young chefs when he was diagnosed with tongue cancer. Despite being robbed of the professional cook’s most critical faculty - to tell one flavour from another - he battled against formidable odds to create dishes of extraordinary subtlety and invention. DT Max reports

Launch your own vintage - Crushpad Wine

chris — Fri, 11 Jul 2008 23:59:35 +0000

Well you always wanted to make your own wine, have your own chateaus or vineyard but don’t have the land, knowledge or equipment?
Well Crushpad Wine can hook you up. With an individual minimum of 25 cases it may seem like a bit of wine but there are methods to work with other enthusiast to share a vintage or adopt a barrel. There is also a community / social aspect to the process with a website called Crushnet.com They have forums, a wiki, blogs and groups that can help with your wine making desires.

It’s probably a good time to begin to finalize the coming years vintage and the site Crushnet.com is full of great info on custom wine making and all the steps it takes to make good wine.

SF Restaurant Guide

chris — Thu, 10 Jul 2008 19:48:06 +0000

The San Francisco Convention and Visitors Bureau has launched a great website for visiting foodies.
Only In San Francisco / Taste
Contains lists of Food History, Featured Articles and Foodie 101 Blog written by a young lady that goes by the nome-de-plume of “the tablehopper” Marcia Gagliardi, that has all the latest dish on local restaurant scene.
She seems very well informed and has a quick to the point style of writing, and shes kinda cute.
There are also Chef profiles and a trip planner.
Looks like a great resource to use on your next visit to San Francisco.

Coq Au Vin not UNESCO world heritage eligible?

chris — Tue, 08 Jul 2008 01:27:27 +0000

French cuisine is not eligible for UNESCO world heritage cultural treasure, because there is no category for Gastronomy. Well maybe there should be, what else does this board do? They can add another category.

Maybe the problem is that all cuisines then want similar recognition? Italy does now, so does Morocco.
Next thing you know Cajun’s will want it, then you got taco trucks protected as UNESCO world heritage sites.

Is there a category for music? There should be one for gastronomy.

1 ton of cheese + July 4 = The signing of the Declaration of Independence

chris — Sun, 06 Jul 2008 02:20:47 +0000

What to do with 1 ton of cheese?

Cheese carver Troy Landwehr brushes oil off a rendition of the signing of the Declaration of Independence carved out of 2000 lbs of cheese in New York, July 3, 2008.
(Lucas Jackson/Reuters)

Looks like there is a job @ Hook - D.C.

chris — Sun, 06 Jul 2008 00:21:35 +0000

According to the Washington Post, Barton Seaver, recently - like last week- named rising culinary star by the Restaurant Association Metropolitan Washington has parted ways with Washington D.C’s Hook - a sustainable seafood restaurant.
No details, just lawyers involved. Can you say $$$

Hook - Line and Sinker

So maybe it’s not the tomatoes now? Let’s blame the chilis

chris — Sat, 05 Jul 2008 23:34:40 +0000

The FDA has now announced they are searching for the source of the recent nation wide Salmonella outbreak and somehow it is now focusing on the “Mexican Connection” . No, not from south of the border, its more of a cuisine thing. I guess someone at the FDA has had an outbreak after eating Mexican food and that sounded good to the scientists. Let’s blame the chili’s

I know many of you may have removed the raw tomatoes from menus or started to be a little more careful about the source of your tomatoes. But now the FDA thinks that ingredients traditionally used in mexican cuisine may hold the carrier.

I have some empathy for the unenviable task of trying to track down such a complex contamination, tomatoes are picked, washed, mixed, packed by the truck load. If you have ever driven the 5 mid summer you know how many tomatoes are just scattered along the highway. Its a huge machine, the tomato industry. All taking a huge hit right now. Maybe we should make tomato ethenol with all the spoils?

From Bloomberg -

“We are not shutting down our borders” to those products, said agency spokeswoman Stephanie Kwisnek today. “We are stepping up our testing of products grown domestically and from Mexico.” An earlier report by CNN said the U.S. would ban imports of some foods from Mexico.

Tomatoes initially were blamed on the outbreak that has stricken 943 people since April 10, according to statistics from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta. More than a third of the cases have been reported in Texas.

In addition to tomatoes, jalapeno peppers, Serrano peppers and cilantro were added to the list of possible tainted products, Kwisnek said.

The strain, called salmonella saintpaul, takes two to three weeks to manifest itself, the CDC said.

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601086&sid=a1fcxa1c52Mo&refer=news