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Whenever we have a dinner party at our house, the food takes center stage. My wife and I love to cook and creating a menu for a special evening with friends is one of our all time favorite things to do. At one of our recent parties our guests could not stop complimenting the food. We served bow tie pasta with a light cream sauce and a sauteed chicken with baby asparagus. We also served roasted red potatoes seasoned with rosemary on the side. The meal really had a nice flow to it and the guests were impressed.
One of the most important aspects of our dinner parties is the appetizers that we serve as guests arrive. We put as much into the planning of the appetizer as we do the dinner. For this particular dinner party we came up with a very creative platter filled with a variety of cheeses. We matched the cheeses with gourmet crackers that we felt would complement the cheese. The beautiful cheese platter was presented with a great bottle of Pinot Noir from our Avanti wine refrigerator.
There were a total of six different cheeses to choose from along with an olive spread that could really have gone with any of them. The crowd favorite seemed to be a dry Monterey Jack cheese that had a very smooth texture. It was really different from the typical soft Monterey Jack that is more popular. We paired this cheese with a cracked pepper water cracker which did not over power this mostly mild cheese. The next crowd favorite was an Irish sharp cheddar. This was a much stronger cheese that dazzled the taste buds. The cheddar was paired with a sort of bagel chip which had a hint of herb flavoring. The bagel chip was also sort of crunchy which also seemed to bring out some of the flavor of the cheddar. The third most popular cheese of the evening was an aged port wine cheese which was creamy and left a hint of port wine aftertaste. This cheese was spread onto a Ritz like cracker.
Several of the guests commented on how such a simple idea as wine and cheese could come together so well. I explained that it is critical to serve the wine at the optimal temperature. If you don’t have the space for a wine refrigerator you can always find a smaller 12 bottle wine cooler that will allow you to keep several of your favorites on hand. The cheese should always be purchased at a gourmet store, or at the gourmet section of some of the larger supermarkets. Avoid the mass produced cheeses found in the dairy case. They can never match the authenticity of the flavors of imported cheeses that are well worth the extra cost.
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Tags: appetizers
Posted in Gourmet cooking · March 5th, 2010 · Comments (0)
Barbecue competitions are great fun and I encourage you to enter one in your area and find out for yourself how much fun they are. Our book “Competition BBQ Secrets” has helped many teams take Grand Champion and Reserve Grand Champion and many other high finishes in the four main barbecue categories… ribs, pork, chicken, and brisket. If you want to get your feet wet before entering a big BBQ contest, try just entering the “backyard” division in a local competition. That’s a category where you will only compete against other beginners and amateurs. It’s a great way to get a feel for things before you start competing against the “big boys”. And don’t forget the other “side competitions” like whole hog, anything but BBQ competitions, pie contests, sauce contests, invitational only contests, Kid’s Q, etc.
Of course, you can always just visit a local contest as a spectator. But I have to warn you… you will not be able to taste the different competitors’ barbeque. They usually only cook enough to turn into the judges and maybe a little extra for themselves and a few friends. If you ask nicely, some of them might throw you a bone or two, but don’t count on it. Actually, they are not allowed to sell barbeque unless they have also paid a vending fee to the sponsor of the contest. So… there should be plenty of vendors selling BBQ, but you can’t go taste testing all the contestants’ BBQ.
However… there are three ways that will enable you to taste the contestants’ barbeque…
1) You can become a certified judge through the BBQ association of your choice and then volunteer to be a judge in a contest. This is a great way to learn how the system works and how real competition BBQ tastes. This is a great tip… become a barbecue judge first and then a competitor. The contests always need good, certified judges and you’ll also be able to take home what you can’t eat when you are judging.
2) You can become a volunteer helper at the contest. Most of the contests are run by non-profit organizations and they need plenty of help. Here’s a little secret… all the contestants are required to turn in a specific amount of servings (let’s say 8). 6 of those servings will go to the judges. They take a small bite of each and then throw the rest in their container they brought with them to take home. The other servings go to the volunteers and table captains to munch on after the contest.
3) Sometimes they have what they call a people’s choice contest. The contestants submit their entries and the entries are divided up into small portions. When it’s your turn, you will be presented with a tray of six numbered samples. You taste them all and rate them on how well they tasted.
To get a schedule of events in your area, I recommend you visit your local barbeque Association web site and check out their calendar of events.
Author of “Competition BBQ Secrets”. For more information on slow smoking competition quality ribs, butts, chicken, and brisket, please visit Bill Anderson’s barbecue recipes web page! He is the recent Grand Champion in Tryon, NC and Greenwood, SC and Kennesaw, GA.
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Tags: barbecue recipes
Posted in Gourmet cooking · March 5th, 2010 · Comments (0)