Music For Your Food Porn Soundtrack - A Foodie Playlist

Now that the city has dug itself out from the first snowstorm of the winter, people can now focus their energies on New Year's Eve party plans. If you are hosting a party this year, food-themed or otherwise, you probably are busy getting your house ready and making the final touches to your food and drink menus.  Don't forget about a key ingredient to any party - the music. Below is a playlist composed of either food-themed songs or artists. The mix is eclectic enough for all musical tastes, or at least long enough to inspire your own additions, so head to your favourite music streaming service, and give it a go. 

All the best to you and yours in the New Year.

• A Tribe Called Quest - "Bonita Applebum"
• Jim Jones and Ron Browz featuring Juelz Santana - "Pop Champagne"
• Sneaker Pimps - "Spin Spin Sugar"
• Akinyele - "Put It In Your Mouth"
• AC/DC - "Have A Drink On Me"
• Action Bronson - "Ceviche"
• Limp Bizkit - "Faith"
• UB40 - "Red Red Wine"
• Katy Perry - "Bon Appétit" 
• Lil Wayne - "Lollipop"
• Portishead -"It Could Be Sweet"
• Method Man - "Meth Vs. Chef"
• Parliament - "Chocolate City"
• DJ Food - "Mr. Quickie Cuts the Cheese"
• The Four Tops - I Can't Help Myself (Sugar Pie, Honey Bun)
• Salt-n-Pepa - "Push It"
• Brandy - "What About Us?"
• The Verve - "Bittersweet Symphony"
• Eminem - "Ass Like That"
• Prince - "Cream"
• Red Hot Chili Peppers - "Give It Away"
• George Thorogood & The Destroyers - "One Bourbon, One Scotch, One Beer"
• Black Eyed Peas - "Pump It"
• DJ Shadow - "Building Steam With A Grain of Salt"
• Massive Attack - "Black Milk"
• Wu-Tang Clan - "C.R.E.A.M"
• Snoop Dogg -"Gin & Juice"
• Sublime - "40 Oz. To Freedom"
• The Notorious B.I.G. - "Juicy"
• Smashing Pumpkins - "Bullet With Butterfly Wings"
• The Chemical Brothers - "Morning Lemon"
• The Tragically Hip - "Little Bones"
• Ice Cube - "Check Yo Self (Radio Remix)"
• Main Source - "Live At the Barbeque"
• Ray Charles - "One Mint Julep"
• The Presidents of the United States of America - "Peaches"
• Spice Girls - "Spice Up Your Life"
• Fishbone - "Lemon Meringue"
• Roger Troutman - "I Heard It Through The Grapevine"
• Blue Öyster Cult - "(Don't Fear) The Reaper"
• The B-52s - "Rock Lobster"
• The Brothers Johnson - "Strawberry Letter #23"
• Public Enemy - "Cold Lampin' With Flavour"
• The Rolling Stones - "Brown Sugar"
• Chuck Berry - "You Never Can Tell"
• Caesars - "Jerk It Out"
• System of a Down - "Chop Suey!"
• Kelis - "Milkshake"
• DNA featuring Suzanne Vega - "Tom's Diner"
• Raekwon - "Ice Cream"
• Korn - "Word Up"
• Reel Big Fish - "Take On Me"
• Toni Basil - "Mickey"
• Vanilla Ice - "Ice Ice Baby"
• 112 featuring Jay-Z and Lil Kim - "Peaches and Cream"
• Peaches & Herb - "Shake Your Groove Thing"
• Strawberry Alarm Clock - "Incense & Peppermints"
• Kim Mitchell - "Go For A Soda"
• The Lovin' Spoonful - "Summer in the City"
• Cream - "Crossroads"
• Cake - "Short Skirt / Long Jacket"
• Peaches - "Fuck the Pain Away"
• Blind Melon - "No Rain"
• The Cranberries - "Zombie"
• Jimmy Eat World - "Sweetness"
• Sugar Ray - "Fly"
• Bananarama - "Venus"
• Taco - "Putting on the Ritz"
• Meatloaf - "Paradise By The Dashboard Light"

A Challenge to Ottawa Foodies and Food Bloggers

Have you heard of the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge? Of course you have, it's the fundraising social media sensation that's sweeping the nation. Please consider donating money for research to find a cure to this disease, even if you consider dumping cold water on yourself silly.

Science and Cooking: From Haute Cuisine to Soft Matter Science - Viscosity and Polymers

As I posted in my October 13th blog entry, I've enrolled in an on-line course about the relationship between science and cooking.  I'm still plugging away at this, good thing I decided to do this for the knowledge and not the class credit.

Here's what went down for Week 7.

• Viscosity measures how easy something is to pour. Water has a low viscosity and cold syrup has a high viscosity.
• The molecules that make a liquid up flow past and bump into each other. To thicken it, we need to add molecules or particles that will impede the motion of the liquid.
• Want to measure the viscosity of a fluid, but you don't have a rheometer? If you have some free time on your hands (and who doesn't?), take a container and put a little hole in the bottom, and measure how long it takes for the fluid to flow through the hole.
• How thick or how thin a sauce is can make or break a recipe. Some of the ways to thicken food are:

1. Reduction: This term you've heard on your favourite cooking show means you take the material you want to thicken, heat it on a stove in an open pan, and you reduce it by simmering it until about half of the water has left, through evaporation. 
• This works because they were already enough molecules in the material you want to thicken to cause a thickening, but because of all the water molecules in the liquid, they were just too far apart to thicken. It works well if you have a stock, because it has lots of gelatin molecules. But it won't work if you just have something with only very small molecules in it. This is why you can't thicken a brine by boiling it, and why can't thicken wine by boiling it, unless you boil it all the way down till it's a glaze and there's almost nothing left.

Here is guest lecturer Carme Ruscalleda in her native Spanish to demonstrate:


2. Emulsion: Another oft-heard cooking show word, this is the process of combining two liquids (usually fat and water) that will maintain their distinct characteristics after being mixed. Common fat in water emulsifications include hollandaise sauce and mayonnaise, and common water in fat emulsifications are vinaigrettes and whole butter.
• Adding oil is a good way to thicken, but it makes what you're making taste of the oil you're using.
3. Starch-based thickener: This is a classic French technique of mixing and cooking equal parts flour and fat into something called a roux.
• The starch in the flour is heated up to the point that it hydrates and gelatinizes, turning the starch molecules into sticky polymers that make a liquid thick.
• Note that you have to cook the roux properly, otherwise it will have a floury taste, and it won't thicken well. You can use cornstarch or arrowroot or other starches, but if you put too much in, your roux will get rubbery and have an unpleasant texture.
4. Modernist thickener: These are substances used by those who worship at the altar of molecular gastronomy. Xanthan gum, a natural product, is made by fermenting a kind of bacteria. Because of the polymer molecules, very small amounts can produce a large increase in the viscosity of a liquid- in most foods, it is used at 0.5%, and can be used in lower concentrations. Xanthan gum also helps thicken commercial egg substitutes made from egg whites, to replace the fat and emulsifiers found in yolks, and is also used in gluten-free baking, as it gives the dough or batter a "stickiness" that would otherwise be achieved with gluten.
• A polymer is a very long, but very flexible molecule, made up of many, many monomers. Polymers have to get out of the way of one another in order for the fluid to flow. This is why polymer thickeners are so effective at increasing the viscosity of a fluid.

• Gels can also be used in thickening, as their long polymer molecules stick to each other, in a random way, trapping both water molecules and all other molecules, into something that effectively becomes a solid, like Jell-o. When you break them up, by pureeing it for example, the gel will reform slightly, and create a fluid gel, which acts like a thick liquid.
• Agar agar (or just agar) is a natural gelatin product made from seaweed that's been used for more than 1000 years in Asian cooking. Like xanthan gum, only a small amount of agar is needed to thicken your soups and sauces.
• Food additives like agar agar and xantha gum can be ordered online at MOLECULE-R.

"Pressure Cooker" - Review of a food documentary

Now that the school year is winding down, I thought this would be a good time to watch this documentary. The documentary follows Philadelphia inner city high school culinary teacher Wilma Stephenson through a school year, leading her students in her challenging classroom. Like all chefs in their kitchens, Stephenson holds high standards and demands respect; heaven help the student who doesn't come correct. The documentary also focuses on some of Stephenson's students - a football player, a cheerleader, and an African immigrant - as they work to compete in a cooking competition with scholarships on the line. This was a delight to watch, and it will bring back memories of that favourite teacher some of us were (hopefully) lucky to have who made a difference in our lives and made us work for a better tomorrow.

• Pressure Cooker

2013: Random food thoughts

Hope the holidays were good to you and yours. As we head into 2014, let's look back at some of the things that happened over the past year that I didn't get a chance to talk about:

• Despite it being the hottest pastry mash-up of the year, I never got the chance to try the cronut, or croughnut, if you prefer the Canadian spelling. I heard that Boko Bakery and Atelier Restaurant were making a version of croissant/donut hybrid, but I don't know if that's still the case.
• When did Sriracha become the end-all/be-all in hot sauces? I know that people are panicking about not getting shipments because of stricter health guideline enforcement in California, but this sudden outpouring of love in the form of clothing and documentaries is a bit much.
• Check out this new instant sushi Asian candy:
  
• Vegans got angry at Starbucks for not having a vegan option for its pumpkin spice latte - all because the latte mix contains condensed milk. The petition is still available for signing, and with over 4000 signatures still needed, can use all the support it can get.
• Even without reading Ottawa Magazine's best restaurants issue, I knew I haven't eaten at any of them  - having a two-year son can do that. I still haven't even had a chance to check out places like Union Local 613, Stone Soup Foodworks, or the supper club at Mellos. I'm sure my wife will agree it's time to arrange a date-night.
• Beer connoisseurs who spend more time looking for the next new craft beer instead of drinking the great beers already available to them, need to re-examine their priorities. It's not necessary to become Captain Ahab in order to find a satisfying malted adult beverage. Stop turning it into the new wine and let beer just be beer.
• We've been eating salad the wrong way for all our lives. Using chopsticks is the way to go - get your lettuce, your tomato, and your crouton without all that stabbing at the plate.
• Gwyneth Paltrow writing a cookbook shouldn't make anyone upset.
• I've only eaten breakfast there once, and had a pint or two in the pub in the back a handful of times, but now that it's gone, the Mayflower on Elgin will be missed.
• Other bloggers have said it better, but it still needs to be repeated - brunch is bullshit. Sure, meeting up with the gang for a meal sounds great when you're still high from leaving the club, but is crawling out of your warm bed on Saturday/Sunday morning when you're hung over, to wait in the cold, in a long line, just to eat eggs with orange-flavoured champagne really worth the effort?
• Pepsi-Flavored Cheetos (Frito Lay Cheetos x Pepsi Shuwa Shuwa Cola Corn Snack) exist...as does hash oil-infused Nutella. I'm sure the Cheetos would go over big with the 4:20 crowd, and that the weed Nutella would give "magic brownies" that much more of an extra punch.
• The word "foodie" is dead. It means nothing and everything at the same time. A foodie is someone really likes food - you know who else likes food a lot? EVERYBODY. My New Year's resolution is to stop using this term to identify myself and this blog. While knowing about food and appreciating it is important, at the end of the day, it's just cooking and eating.

Foodie gift list - 2013

The holiday shopping season has already began, and whether you plan to do your Christmas shopping on Black Friday, Cyber Monday, or on Christmas Eve like a normal person, here are some gift suggestions for the cook or foodie on your list.

• Adjustable Rolling Pin
  Take all the guesswork out of baking with a rolling pin that ensures the dough is rolled to an even thickness throughout.
  
• Bacon Grill Press
  For the obsessive-compulsive carnivore in your life, give them the gift of no more curly bacon. This cast iron press will allow the bacon to keep its shape for even cooking in the pan, and can be used to flatten burgers and sandwiches as well.
  
  
  
  Got an obsessive-compulsive vegetarian to buy for? The Obsessive Chef Cutting Board is just the thing for them. Made from naturally antibacterial beechwood, this cutting board breaks down measurements into perfect squares and angles, even units as small as a julienne.
  
• Cheat Sheet Kitchen Apron
  Know of any cooks who are constantly running to their smartphone every time they need to convert a weight or measurement when cooking? This stylish apron will help them out and keep them clean all at the same time.
  
•  iPad Cutting Board
  Of course some people can't bear to be away from their tablets. Made with four rubberized anti-slip feet, and a juice groove to keep the iPad and the counter top dry, this cutting board was designed with those people in mind.
  
  
  You also may consider the gift of apps to the constantly connected. Two good ones are Mark Bittman’s essential cookbook “How to Cook Everything” and the digital rendition of Modernist Cuisine At Home. These are exclusively for Apple users, Android users like myself would have to rely on the BigOven or the Food Network In the Kitchen apps available at Google Play.
  
• DSV Sous Vide Controller
  With this device, you can turn a slow cooker into a sous-vide machine with ease - how you vacuum-seal your food though, is up to you.
  
• Infrared IR Non-Contact Digital Thermometer
  Instantly check the surface temperature of food or anything else in the house in seconds with an accuracy of +/- 2.5%. It won't replace the probe thermometer for internal temperatures but it's still a cool device.
  
  But if you know of someone who needs a cool probe thermometer, consider giving them the Thermapen. Accurate to within less than a degree (±0.7°F , or ±0.4°C), this is a favourite of noted kitchen-gadget authority Alton Brown.
  
• Mobile Foodie Survival Kit 
  A foodie will never have to rough it on a camping trip ever again with this mobile spice rack. This kit starts them out with a good variety of herbs and spices, and the containers are reusable so people can add their own favourites.
  
• Molecular Cocktails Starter Kit
  This is the perfect gift for anyone who hosts viewing parties for "Top Chef". Pair it with one of the Modernist Cuisine Cooking Kits to create the ultimate foodie dinner party.
  
• One Stop Chop Cutting Board
  With its raised bamboo surface, this cutting board has three storage drawers underneath, making prep work that much easier.
  
• Sauced Measuring Wine Glass
  For the oenophile on your list, what could be better than a lead-free-crystal all-purpose wine glass, marked in 1/4 cups and 2-ounce sips? If you said "wine", include a gift card from the LCBO.
  

Science and Cooking: From Haute Cuisine to Soft Matter Science - Week 4

As I posted in my October 13th blog entry, I've enrolled in an on-line course about the relationship between science and cooking. It's been awhile since my last post about this course, for reasons that may or may not have to do with "Batman: Arkham Origins", and a neglected stack of laundry.

Here's what went down on the fourth week.

• This week the topic is elasticity, and one of the guest lecturers is White House Pastry Chef Bill Yosses.
• Who knew the White House had its own pastry chef? I wonder if either Barrack or Michelle has ever asked him to whip up a batch of cro-nuts for them.
• To measure elasticity, we are shown how it is measured with a spring. This principle of physics, called Hooke's law, states that the force needed to extend or compress a spring by some distance is proportional to that distance. That is, F = k x, where k is a constant factor characteristic of the spring, its stiffness.
• What does this have to do with food? Elasticity in food relates to how it feels in your mouth when you chew it. For example, the elasticity of a steak will increase as it becomes more difficult to chew the longer it is cooked.
• I had no idea there were different mouth feels for tofu, or that firm and soft tofu even existed.
• The mathematical description of an object or substance's tendency to be deformed elastically (i.e., non-permanently) when a force is applied to it is E = U over I³, where U is the interaction energy between the bonds in the material, and I is the distance between them. This is also the equation of the week in case you were wondering.
• We are treated to a scientific look at the making of strudel, which leads to a discussion about gluten, the protein that gives strudel dough its special characteristics.



• Did you know hearing plays a part in the enjoyment of food? Harold McGee talks about an experiment done at Oxford University where the subjects put on sound-blocking headphones, and  sat in front of a microphone, and bit into potato chips. The sound of the biting was picked up by the microphone and processed before the sound was passed back to the eaters' ears through the headphones. When the chewing sound was sent to the headphones unchanged, the eaters rated the chip as normally crisp. When the sound was amplified, they rated the chip as more crisp.
• McGee also mentions anthropologist Richard Wrangham's belief that because cooked food is often easier to chew, the invention of cooking has had a profound effect on the evolution of the human species.
• Dan Souza from America's Test Kitchen and Nathan Myhrvold of Modernist Cuisine fame both recommend slow-roasting tough cuts of meat, like an eye of round roast - who am I to argue?
• Poking your meat full of holes can make it be more juicy. This process is called jaccarding, and is done with a device not surprisingly called a Jaccard. A Jaccard has tiny blades that cuts little bits of the muscle fibers weakening the collagen fibres in them without cutting the meat totally. By poking the meat with holes, the collagen fibers do a less effective job squeezing the moisture out of the meat when it's being cooked.
• Note to self: Invest in a sous-vide machine so I can experience a short rib slow cooked for 72 hours.
• We end Week 4 with a summary of elasticity and another appearance by Bill Yosses, who demonstrates how, with a little sugar, water, and glucose, you can make a candy apple.

Science and Cooking: From Haute Cuisine to Soft Matter Science - Week 3

As I posted in my October 13th blog entry, I've enrolled in an on-line course about the relationship between science and cooking. A very video heavy week this time out - food porn fans would really appreciate all the detail that went into the making of this course. 

Here's what went down on the third week.

• The guest presenters this time out are Joan Roca, who runs the world-famous restaurant El Celler de Can Roca in Girona, Spain with his two brothers; and Dan Souza, senior editor for Cook's Illustrated Magazine, and current cast member of the America's Test Kitchen television show, radio program and podcast.
• This week we learned about the various phase transitions foods can go through in the cooking process. While a change in temperature can cause a phase transition, a change in pressure can also make this happen.
• A pressure cooker works by trapping some steam as water inside it boils, thus increasing the pressure and raising the boiling point. When the boiling water reaches this higher boiling point, it transfers heat to the food more quickly than water at just 100 degrees Celsius. This is a much better way to explain how a pressure cooker works than the method used to describe what happened in Boston back in April of this year.
• Want to cook the perfect egg, one with a temperature of about 64 degrees Celsius, perfectly every time? As water boils at a lower temperature as you gain altitude, just climb a tall enough mountain. Unfortunately, the boiling point of water on the top of Mount Everest is about 71 degrees Celsius, so you're going to need a bigger mountain.
• Chef Roca then demonstrates some of his renowned sous-vide cooking techniques by cooking, among other things, eggs and a fillet of sole.
  
  
  
  
• Another method to cause a phase transition is to use a rotovap, which is used in laboratories for the removal of solvents from samples by evaporation, and in cooking for the preparation of distillates and extracts. Check eBay for one if you ever need to distill the essence of something in one of your dishes.
  
• The concept of entropy has been introduced; I don't recall ever hearing about entropy in either elementary or high school science class, but I'm learning about it as part of a course about cooking, go figure.
• To be fair, I don't recall getting as much background in the half semesters of elementary school home-ec class either. Maybe it's time it should...
• Still haven't clapped for the equation of the week. This time it's U = CkBT.
• A chemical breakdown of fats and a discussion about the science of supercooling follows, along with an explanation of why you can't make water as salty as you can sweet. Thanks to this course, I now know that the solubility of any compound, is similar to the phase transition between a solid and a gas. 
• I scream, you scream, this week's lab involves the making of ice cream - sweet.

Cooking the Google Way

Much to the dismay of Microsoft, Google is the most used search engine is the world. It's incredible how much this company has affected our lives since its inception in 1997, and one of the latest features from the boys out in Mountain View, California is Google Helpouts, a new service that connects you to experts, live over video chat, to get help with issues ranging from home repair, learning a new language, or general lifestyle advice. Many of them are completely free, so here are some suggestions that many be of interest to the wired foodie.

• Basic Cooking
  
  Need help cooking? Rouxbe chefs are here to help with your questions about basic cooking, recipe troubleshooting or to simply help you get dinner on the table.


• Improve your Food Photography
  
  Be the darling of Instagram with these tips from Earl Lee, a food blogger with over 5 years of food photography experience.


• Kitchen Catastrophes Solved
  
  Is your soufflé sad? Your stew lacking spice? Your steak kinda grey? Run out of menu ideas for a dinner party? Let Sherród Faulks, the creator of Sunday Supper Club video series help.


• Learn about Coffee: Advice from Roasting to Tasting
  
  Baristas aren't the only people who know from coffee, become more of a coffee connoisseur with the advice for this small batch hand roasting expert.


• Top Chef University
  
  Want to cook like your favourite Top Chef? Got some money you want to spend? If you answered "yes" to both of these questions, you now have access to over 50 hours of video cooking content, 220 video lessons and footage from 11 of the most popular contestants from the Emmy Award winning show.


• Urban farming basics: how to grow your own vegetable garden
  
  In this Helpout, you'll get information about garden size, what to grow, where to grow it, how to take care of your plants, as well as tips on the herbs and vegetables you should pick for your climate and personal preferences, and how to make it work with available space for planting.

Eggplant with Buttermilk Sauce - Science and Cooking: From Haute Cuisine to Soft Matter Science

As I posted in my October 13th blog entry, I've enrolled in an on-line course about the relationship between science and cooking. Part of the week one homework was to follow a recipe and answer some questions about the dish that was made. Buying one of the ingredients in this dish lead me to the Mid-East Food Center, which I will be visiting again when it's time to restock the pantry. Neither Dawn or myself are big fans of eggplant, but we both loved the sauce that goes with this dish, and I would try this dish again, only this time I'd try grilling the eggplant. That being said, until I find something tastier to replace it, this will be my go to dish for any vegetarians I encounter in my cooking journey.

Ingredients 

2 eggplants, cut in half lengthwise and scored
120 mL + 20 mL olive oil
7.5 mL thyme
1 pomegranate
5 mL/3 g za'atar (Google for substitutions, if necessary)
133 mL buttermilk (or 133 mL milk + 7.5 mL distilled/white vinegar)
1 crushed garlic clove
salt and black pepper for seasoning

1. Preheat an oven to 200°C.
2. Place eggplant halves flat side-up on a baking sheet and brush with 30 mL olive oil apiece. Season with thyme, salt, and pepper.
3. Roast for 40 minutes, remove from oven, and allow to cool to room temperature.
4. If buttermilk is not available, add vinegar to milk, stir, and let sit for 5-10 minutes to develop into acidified buttermilk. Mix in yogurt, remaining olive oil, garlic, and salt to season. Store in refrigertor while eggplant cools.
   
5. Remove seeds from pomegranate. Serve by spooning sauce over eggplant halves and sprinkling za'atar and pomegranate seeds on top.
   

The Beetlejuice and Stay Puft Cocktails

Happy Halloween everybody. These beverage are perfect for that costume party you're going to, or for either after or before you've taken the kids out trick-or-treating. Please remember to drink responsibly.

Science and Cooking: From Haute Cuisine to Soft Matter Science - Week 2

As I posted in my October 13th blog entry, I've enrolled in an on-line course about the relationship between science and cooking. Still haven't had the chance to try any of the recipes, still trying to a get a better grasp of the science portion of the lessons. Not enough hours in the week, but no one ever said taking a Harvard on-line course would be easy.

Here's what went down on the second week.

• This week's guest lecturer is Dave Arnold. Week 2's focus is on energy, temperature, and heat, so naturally we begin with a recipe to carbonate a cocktail to show what happens when you mix ethanol and water. I knew I signed up for this class for a reason.
• Because they're scientists, the instructors like to make things quantitative, in the belief that when we start to make ideas quantitative, then we'll start to understand qualitatively better.
• The benefits of sous-vide cooking is then demonstrated in an example using eggs cooked at various temperatures in a very small window between 57 Celsius and 70. Accurately controlling the temperature can make a great deal of difference - something to keep in mind when you're trying to make the perfect Eggs Benedict or eggs on toast.
• Equation of the week:  equals mc sub p delta t. (Or heat equals mass x specific heat capacity x change in temperature). You can use that equation to calculate how much energy you have to put into heating a cup of  water.
• Start with water that's at room temperature, in this case, about 23 degrees Celsius. One cup of water is 237 grams. We are going to heat it to the boiling point, 100 degrees Celsius. The specific heat (c sub p). for water is 4.18 joules per gram degree Kelvin.
• How much energy do I have to dump in? Using the equation Q is equal to mc sub p delta t, put in that m is equal to 237 grams, that c sub p is equal to 4.18 joules per degree Kelvin, and that delta T is 77 degrees Celsius (100 degrees Celsius - 23 degrees Celsius, the final temperature minus the initial temperature) If we multiply all of these things out, we got 237 times 4.18 times 77. So that's how much energy it takes to boil a cup of water -76 280 joules.
• What does that mean? Think about it like this, how much wood would you have to burn in order to make this much energy? If you take the energy density of wood, 14 megajoules per kilogram, then you can calculate for yourself that the amount of wood that it takes is 76 280 joules divided by 14 megajoules per kilogram, which is 5.4 grams of wood.
• Just for fun!: Go look at the power output of your microwave, calculate how long does it take for you to generate the 76 280 joules needed to boil water. If you put water in a cup in your microwave for that amount of time, does it actually boil? If not, why not?
• NOTE: Most microwaves have a power output of about 400 watts.
  The watts to joules calculation is the energy E in joules (J) is equal to the power P in watts (W), times the time period t in seconds (s): E(J) = P(W) × t(s).
• I got 190.7 seconds, feel free to let me know if my math is off (scroll over to see).
• You really see how much you don't know about a topic when you answer all the week's pre-questions.
• The liquid nitrogen lecture reminds me of an experiment I've been meaning to try, and of a cool food truck I saw on an episode of Eat St. recently.
• Think of heat as the most used and the most mysterious ingredient in your kitchen --> Harold McGee
• Heat: the total energy that results in the temperature of a system
  Temperature: the measure of energy in the motion of molecules in the material
• Want a quick way to calculate the number of calories in what you're eating? Use the 449 rule.
• We end with a demonstration of the coffee-infused rum cocktail the cafe Touba being made, and some more fun with equations involving latent heat.

Science and Cooking: From Haute Cuisine to Soft Matter Science - Week 1

As I posted in my October 13th blog entry, I've enrolled in an on-line course about the relationship between science and cooking. Here's what went down on the first week. I'm liking the course so far, I just wish I could manage my time better to get through all the labwork. Just like back at Algonquin - some things never change.

• The course starts with a welcome and an overview from some of the instructors Michael Brenne, Pia Sorensen, and Dave Weitz, an applied mathematician, a chemist, and a physicist, respectively. They talk about learning about the underlying scientific principles of food and cooking, and about some of the cooking labs we'll get a chance to do in the course.
• Ferran Adrià introduces himself in the next video, and talk about his background in cooking, and his new project, the El Bulli Foundation.
• The author of the textbook we're using, Harold McGee  talks for a bit about the place he did most of his research for the book, the Schlesinger Library for the study of women in history at Harvard. I was surprised to learn that people where interested in the science of cooking since the 17th century, and that the pressure cooker has existed since 1681 (thanks Denis Papin).
• In between the videos are a series of short-answer questions about what we've watch so far. Participation in the online exercises do not contribute to my grade, what counts are the homework assignments, the lab exercises, and the final project. I'm still not sure if I'm going to complete the course for the certificate, or if I'm just learning for the sake of learning yet...
• Next we see an example of spherification, a form of gelation first pioneered by Adria. 
• Lecture 2 get right into the science part of the course with a decision about the molecules that make the food we eat. We are then asked to calculate the number of molecules in a 250mL glass of water. Terms like grams per mole, atomic mass unit, and Avogadro's number are being thrown around. I now see why a knowledge of high school physics and chemistry was considered a useful prerequisite for this course. So if you thought this was going to be a bird course, you're either sadly mistaken, or a lot smarter than I am.
• I'm introduced to the practice of clapping when the Equation of the Week is introduced during the lectures as a way to get people excited about the science...sure. I'll just say I clapped while I watch the lectures.
• One of the tasks in the week 1 lab is calibrating your oven using sugar. Sugar melts at 366 F (186˚C). If sugar melts at 350 F (177˚C), your oven is running hot. I preheated my oven at 350 F for 10 minutes and placed in it half a teaspoon of sugar in an aluminum pan.
  
  Here's the result 15 minutes later.
  
  Looks like I'm running hot, I may choose to calibrate it better using a oven thermometer.
• The homework portion finally gets to some cooking, but I didn't get a chance to buy the required groceries. I'll keep you posted my efforts.

The Perfect Cup of Tea

Want to make a spot-on cup every time and learn a bit about what's in the cup you're drinking? Check out this handy guide from Life Made Simple.

Class is in session

If you're a foodie like me, you're as interested in the science of cooking as much as you are in the art of cooking - you've read "Cooking for Geeks" numerous times, and Marcel Vigneron hasn't turned you off of molecular gastronomy completely. This is why I enrolled in the online course Harvard is offering on edX, Science and Cooking: From Haute Cuisine to Soft Matter Science. The idea of expanding my cooking knowledge from world-renowned chefs all from the comfort of my own home, and for free was too tempting an offer to pass up.

Developed as a way to teach science to non-science majors at Harvard, this course has been four years in the making. The course textbook is "On Food and Cooking", by Harold McGee, one of the lecturers, and some of the instructors include cooking superstars such as Ferran Adrià, David Chang, and Wylie Dufresne. Through interactive lectures, each week will focus on a single scientific topic related to cooking. In order to complete the course, I will have to complete homework assignments, problem sets and labs as I would in a brick-and-mortar classroom. The labs range from calibrating your oven to making molten chocolate cake. There is a final project where I get to conduct my own scientific study of a recipe or aspect of cooking. While earning a certificate at the end of the course is not my goal,  I will attempt to complete as many of the course activities as possible, and chronicle my efforts here on the blog. I believe there is still time left to enroll in the course, so for those who are interested, maybe I'll see you in the Discussion Forums. Until then, I got to finish the requirements for week 1.

Quick and Dirty Chicken Marinade

Has this ever happened to you - you see a recipe in your favorite cookbook that you want to make, you go to your pantry, and you discover that don't have some of the necessary ingredients? When this happens, you can do one of two things - head to the grocery store, or improvise with what you got. I chose the latter when I made a chicken marinade from a recipe in The "Joy of Cooking", and all things considered, I think it turned out fine.

Mix in a bowl until well blended the following:

1/4 cup beer
1/4 cup vinegar
1/4 cup olive oil

2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar

2 tablespoons oregano
2 tablespoon lemon juice or Italian salad dressing
1 tablespoon Old Bay seasoning
2 teaspoons salt
2 teaspoons black pepper
2 teaspoons soy sauce
4 to 6 garlic cloves, minced
3 dashes hot sauce

Easy baking

I don't bake. Like some of the contestants on "Chopped", I freeze up at the thought of having to bake a cake. It's not like I don't like baked goods, it's just that I would rather not try to make any. My wife does the baking in our house, and she does a good job making cookies, muffins, and pies for me and our son. But for whatever reason (not a big dessert guy, still foolishly equating baking as a girlie activity), I've never felt the need to give baking a try until recently. I came across a recipe on Instructables that was so easy and pain-free that even a novice like myself could bake someone happy. And since I needed to bring something to a pot-luck brunch I was invited to over this past long weekend, it was the perfect time to try it out.

Ingredients for Ice Cream Bread

3 cups self-rising flour (Or make your own using this simple equation: for each 1 cup of flour add 1½ teaspoons baking powder, and ½ teaspoon salt)
3 cups of your favorite ice cream (REAL ice cream, no low-fat or lite stuff)

1. Preheat oven to 350℉ (180℃). Grease and flour bread pan, or line with parchment paper.
2. Mix melted ice cream and flour until well combined. Pour into prepared bread pan.
3. Bake for 45-90 minutes; the bread is done when a skewer inserted into the middle comes out clean. If the top starts to brown too much, cover it with aluminum foil and continue to bake.

Foodie fail

I wish I could say I'm one of those foodie home cooks who master any recipe they tackle but I'm not. Since the time I've decided to take my approach to cooking a bit more seriously, I've had some dishes that haunt me for their failure to come out as I had expected. The first was a Beef Wellington, a classic dish that I felt would satisfy my craving for meat and crusty bread at dinnertime. But while the beef tenderloin was cooked well, my puff pastry was not as light and flaky as I had hoped, the bottom had a mushy texture that didn't sit well with me. I quickly realized that I didn't roll the puff pastry thin enough, and I may have been a bit too enthusiastic with the egg wash. My wife thought it was fine regardless, but wives are like that, happy that their husbands made the effort to make dinner, or at the very least, are happy that they didn't have to cook dinner. Another cooking misstep was with making Eggs Benedict, and oddly enough, the mishap occurred on my second attempt. While I managed to poach the eggs without any problems, my attempt at making a Hollandaise sauce became a runny scrambled egg soup of a disaster. I don't know why I thought I could make the sauce on the stovetop; the only other time I tried making Eggs Benedict I used the blender method below. I couldn't use that sauce for my breakfast special, as it was part of a Mother's Day breakfast, so I poured the sauce down the drain, and threw a few drabs of Tabasco sauce on instead. Again, Dawn was happy with the meal, but I was annoyed with my results. I know I shouldn't have been, as mistakes are a part of the learning process, and in the Food Network/Martha Stewart world we live in, the bar is set to such ridiculously high heights, it's hard to not feel like you failed. There's no need for me to put extra pressure on myself. At this stage of my culinary travels, I should be striving to be just "good enough", and focus on learning better techniques and approaches to cooking than striving for perfection. And for the most part, I've been happy with the majority of the dishes I've made. I will overcome these food missteps, as I'm sure there will be others in the future. And if I mess up another meal, I'll use that stack of take-out menus on the top of the fridge as my backup plan. Expanding my cooking knowledge is one thing, but if I'm going to beat myself up for my kitchen nightmares, I might as well do it over a well-cooked meal...and the Eggs Benny at Stoneface Dolly's  is the best in Ottawa, IMHO.

Beef Wellington - Ingredients

1 - 1.5 kg beef tenderloin
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 cup mushrooms (include some wild ones if you like)
3.5 tablespoons butter
1 large sprig fresh thyme
100 ml ounces dry white wine
12 slices prosciutto or 12 slices bacon
1 handful flour, to dust
2 egg yolks beaten with 1 tsp water

1. Heat oven to 350°F Place the beef tenderloin on a roasting tray, brush with 1 tbsp olive oil and season with pepper, then roast for 15 mins for medium-rare or 20 mins for medium. When the beef is cooked to your liking, remove from the oven to cool, then chill in the fridge for about 20 minutes.
2. While the beef is cooling, chop the mushrooms as finely as possible so they have the texture of coarse breadcrumbs. You can use a food processor to do this, but make sure you pulse-chop the mushrooms so they don't turn into mush.
3. Heat 2 tbsp of the oil and all the butter in a large pan and fry the mushrooms on a medium heat, with the thyme sprig, for about 10 mins stirring often, until you have a softened mixture. Season the mushroom mixture, pour over the wine and cook for about 10 mins until all the wine has been absorbed. The mixture should hold its shape when stirred. Remove the mushroom mixture from the pan to cool and discard the thyme.
4. Overlap two pieces of plastic wrap over a large chopping board. Lay the prosciutto on the plastic wrap, slightly overlapping, in a double row. Spread half the mushroom mixture over the prosciutto, then sit the fillet on it and spread the remaining mushroom mixture over it. Use the plastic wrap edges to draw the prosciutto around the fillet, then roll it into a sausage shape, twisting the ends of plastic wrap to tighten it as you go. Chill the fillet while you roll out the pastry.
5. Roll out a third of the pastry to a 17 x 30 cm strip and place on a non-stick baking sheet. Roll out the remaining pastry to about 27 x 35 cm  Unravel the fillet from the plastic wrap and place it in the center of the smaller strip of pastry and brush the pastry's edges, and the top and sides of the wrapped fillet, with beaten egg yolk. Using a rolling pin, carefully lift and drape the larger piece of pastry over the fillet, pressing well into the sides. Trim the edges to about a 4 cm rim. Seal the rim with the edge of a fork or spoon handle. Glaze all over with more egg yolk and, using the back of a knife, mark the beef Wellington with long diagonal lines taking care not to cut into the pastry. Chill for at least 30 mins and up to 24 hours.
6. Heat oven to 350°F Brush the Wellington with a little more egg yolk and cook until golden and crisp - 20-25 mins for medium-rare beef, 30 mins for medium. Allow to stand for 10 mins before serving in thick slices.

Ingredients - Eggs Benedict 

8 pieces of bacon or 4 pieces of Canadian bacon
2 tablespoons chopped parsley, for garnish
4 eggs
2 teaspoons white or rice vinegar
2 English muffins
butter

Blender Hollandaise
10 Tbsp unsalted butter
3 egg yolks
1 Tbsp lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon salt
Dash of cayenne or tabasco

1. Heat a large skillet on medium low heat. Add the meat, slowly fry, turning occasionally, until the Canadian bacon is browned on both sides, or if you're using strip bacon, until much of the fat is rendered out (about 10 minutes). Use tongs or a fork to remove the bacon from the pan, set on a paper towel to absorb the excess fat.
2. While the bacon is cooking, bring a large saucepan two-thirds-filled with water to a boil, then add the vinegar. Bring the water to a boil again, then lower the heat to a bare simmer..
3. To make blender Hollandaise, melt 10 Tbsp unsalted butter. Put 3 egg yolks, a tablespoon of lemon juice, 1/2 teaspoon salt in a blender, blend on medium to medium high speed for 20-30 seconds, until eggs lighten in color. Turn blender down to lowest setting, slowly dribble in the hot melted butter, while continuing to blend. Taste for salt and acidity and add more salt or lemon juice to taste.Transfer it to a container you can use for pouring and set it on a warm – but not hot – place on or near the stovetop.
4. Poach the eggs. When all four eggs are cooked, turn off the heat, cover the pan, and let sit for 4 minutes. (Remember which egg went in first, you'll want to take it out first.) When it comes time to remove the eggs, gently lift out with a slotted spoon. Note that the timing is a little variable on the eggs, depending on the size of your pan, how much water, how many eggs, and how runny you like them. You might have to experiment a little with your set-up to figure out what you need to do to get the eggs exactly the way you like them.
5. As soon as all the eggs are in the poaching water, begin toasting your English muffins. If you can’t get all the muffins toasted by the time the eggs are ready, gently remove the eggs from the poaching water and set in a bowl.
6. To assemble the breakfast sandwich, butter one side of an English muffin. Top with two slices of bacon or 1 slice of Canadian bacon. You can trim the bacon to fit the muffin if you’d like. Put a poached egg on top of the bacon, then pour some Hollandaise over. Sprinkle some parsley over it all and serve at once.

Led astray by Alexander Keith

I thought I knew what an India pale ale was when I tasted my first Alexander Keith's India Pale Ale back in the late nineties. I remember liking both the citrusy smell and the slight bitterness of the beverage, and it replaced Molson Canadian as my go-to beer when I went to either the bar or the Beer Store. Even after it was discovered the annoying Scotsman used in an ad campaign liked kiddie porn almost as much as he liked his ale, the popularity of Keith's continued to soar, with it now being available in the U.S. after being a Canadian exclusive for centuries. But as the saying goes, a little knowledge is a dangerous thing. Not only is Alexander Keith's not the best India pale ale on the market, it turns out that it isn't even a true India pale ale.

As beer nerds are quick to point out, a proper IPA has a higher alcohol content, is a lot more bitter due to the higher level of hops, and is fruitier in smell, and heavier in body than what you get in Alexander Keith's. Labatt, who owns Alexander Keith’s in Halifax, haven't brewed a strong-tasting ale since the days of  Prohibition, and Keith’s brew master emeritus doesn't feel there is a need to change the long-standing brand. And why should he; as their slogan used say, those who like Keith's, like it a lot. And I still like Keith's quite a bit. I'm not planning to throw out my membership in the Order of the Stag, and I give Alexander Keith all the credit in the world for being a better brewmaster than Samuel Adams ever was (turns out he was more interested in American independence than he was in making beer). But after a recent visit to the LCBO where I bought a random sampling of IPAs, I found a couple of ales that I'll be more than happy to drink over the course of the summer. If you have a chance, have a taste of the following, and feel free to let me know what you think, and if there's an IPA out there that I should be drinking, let me know.

Updated: 12-26-2016

• Amsterdam Boneshaker IPA
• Beaus Beaver River IP Eh
• Beaus Gigantic: La Formidable^*
• Beyond the Pale Aromatherapy
• Great Lakes Brewing Audrey Hopburn
• Great Lakes Brewing Karma Citra^*
• Great Lakes Brewing RoboHop
• Great Lakes Brewing THRUST!^*
• Hop City HopBot IPA
• Hops and Robbers Extra Delicious IPA
• Le Castor Yakima IPA
• Leo's Early Breakfast IPA^*
• Muskoka Brewery Mad Tom IPA
• Nickel Brook Headstock IPA 
• Red Racer India Pale Ale
• Stone Delicious IPA^*

^* Personal favourite

Cornballs and Frozen Bananas

For fans of the cancelled cult comedy "Arrested Development", the wait is finally over. Seven years later, season four starts streaming on Netflix at 3:01 a.m. ET. in Canada May 26th. What would be more perfect than getting together with some friends and serving some cornballs and some frozen bananas while watching the continuing adventures of the Bluth family? Nothing, that's what...come on!

Ingredients for Cornballs

1/2 cup white flour
1/2 cup fine cornmeal
1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon fresh ground pepper
1 egg
1/2 cup unsweetened soy milk with 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
oil for frying

1. Place all ingredients in a bowl and mix well.
   
   For a savory cornball, add the following to the bowl:
   1/4 cup diced onion
   2 minced cloves of garlic,
   1/4 teaspoon red chili flakes
   2 tablespoons grated cheddar cheese (optional)
   Once the mixture is combined, add in the kernels of the ear of a cob of corn and 2 minced green onions and mix again.
   
   For a sweeter cornball, add this ingredient instead:
   1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
   1/4 teaspoon sugar
   Once the mixture is combined, add in the kernels of the ear of a cob of corn and mix again.
   
   
2. Heat at least 6 inches of oil in a pot. Once the oil is hot, begin making your cornballs. Make each ball about 1 inch round and carefully place them in the oil. Once the cornballs are a nice golden brown on one side, flip them over. They will need to cook about 3 minutes per side. Once done, remove them from the oil and lay down on a paper towel to cool. For the sweeter version, combine 1/4 cup of sugar with another ¼ teaspoon of cinnamon in a Ziploc bag, add the cooked cornballs, seal and shake. Serve hot with drizzled maple syrup on top.

Always remember to be very careful when making cornballs. The Bluths can't stress that enough.

---

Ingredients for Frozen Bananas

Bunch of bananas, peeled
Equal number of popsicle sticks to bananas
Bag of semi-sweet chocolate

4 tablespoons unsalted butter

Dipping decorations: granola, chopped nuts, sprinkles, jimmies, crushed cookies, or toasted coconut

1. Line a sheet pan with waxed paper. Cut 1-inch off the end of each banana. 
2. Insert a popsicle stick into the cut-end of each banana, pushing the stick halfway in, leaving the other end exposed for use as a handle. Place the bananas on the sheet pan and freeze 1 hour.
3. While the bananas get hard, melt the chocolate and butter in a double-broiler or in a bowl over a saucepan of simmering water, stirring occasionally.
4. Arrange the dipping decorations on several flat plates. Working with 1 banana at a time, dip it in the chocolate and turn to completely coat (spoon some on, if needed). Roll the dipped banana in the desired decorations, transfer to the sheet pan, and return to the freezer. Once frozen, store the bananas in an airtight container.