7.20.2011

Barney's Version

Barney Panofsky is a Jewish Canadian tv producer who loves to drink, watch hockey and be married–3 times??



This movie was really great, despite its almost unbelievable love story–I mean, really, who would willingly marry this guy? Jam packed with a great story line and fantastic acting, this movie sucked me right in and I found myself completely invested in all of the characters, even the pitifully vexing Barney Panofsky.



We give this movie the prize for: 
BEST FATHERLY ADVICE: "In the beginning it's all briskets and blow jobs, ain't life grand, yada yada, but then real life happens"— Izzy Panofsky (Dustin Hoffman)

Movie Rating: 
Plot: 3.33 stars
Cinematography: 3.33 stars
Acting: 4.16 stars
Average: 3.5+ stars

movie stills found here



Eggs Benedict with Kale, Roasted Tomatoes, and Canadian Bacon
(modified from this recipe)

Ingredients:
4 English Muffins
8 large eggs
8 slices Canadian Bacon
1 bunch of Kale, washed and dried
4 tomatoes
Hollandaise Sauce (recipe follows): 3 egg yolks, 1/4 teaspoon Dijon mustard, 1 tablespoon lemon juice, 1/2 cup melted unsalted butter, salt and pepper
Chives

Directions:
Slice the tomatoes vertically and place them open side down on a oiled baking sheet. Roast in the oven until desired doneness. Set aside.
Cut stems from kale and coarsely chop. Blanche in a large pot of boiling, salted water for 2 minutes. Drain and place in an ice water bath to stop the cooking process. Once cooled, drain and saute over medium heat with olive oil, salt and pepper until warmed through. Set aside.

Make the hollandaise sauce:
Place the butter in a small, heavy bottom pan, and set it over low-medium heat to melt. Once melted, let it gently bubble for about ten minute to evaporate any residual water and to consolidate the milk solids. Pour through a cheesecloth lined sieve into a measuring cup, once all the butter has passed through, carefully press on the cloth with the back of a spoon to extract all of the butter fat. OK so I must confess i skipped all of this and nuked the darn butter in the microwave to to lack of space on my tiny stovetop and lack of a cheesecloth. This may be why my sauce did not turn out so good so I wrote in the actual directions if you are so inclined to try it.
In the container of a blender, combine the egg yolks, mustard, and lemon juice. Cover, and blend on low for 15 seconds.
Set the blender on medium speed and pour the hot butter into the egg yolk mixture in a thin stream. It should thicken almost immediately, switch to high speed for about 5 seconds and then turn off the machine.

Poach your eggs. We used these poachpods which make the process so easy! Bring water to a boil, oil the inside of the poach pods, set them adrift on the water like little boats. Crack one egg into each and cook 3–5 minutes to desired doneness.



Split and toast your english muffins, place them on your plate. Top each muffin half with a pile of kale and some roasted tomato. Top with a poached egg, hollandaise sauce and chopped chives. Eat!



We also made this sauce to top our dessert of maple walnut ice cream.

INGREDIENTS
6 tablespoons pure maple syrup
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 quart vanilla ice cream (we went with a maple walnut)
1/3 cup finely chopped walnuts (we skipped as they were in our ice cream)


DIRECTIONS
Simmer maple syrup and salt in a heavy medium saucepan over medium heat until slightly thickened, about 5 minutes (do not stir). Add 1/2 cup ice cream and whisk until smooth, about one minute. Spoon sauce over ice cream and serve!


Dinner Rating: 
Movie Relevance: 3.66 stars
Taste: 4.416 stars
Average: 4 stars

Special thanks to our special guest and judge–Jessica! Thanks so much for bringing the Canadian beer! You are welcome any time ;)

7.13.2011

Driving Miss Daisy

Finally!

A great movie that wasn't depressing and kept us entertained throughout. It's been awhile, I know.

Miss Daisy Werthan (Jessica Tandy) is a Southern Jewish woman who isn't keen on relinquishing her independence. When her son Boolie (Dan Aykroyd) hires handy Hoke Colburn (Morgan Freeman) to be her driver she stubbornly resists, doing her best to ignore him altogether. As Daisy and Hoke age, the pair develops a friendship that deepens and endures for years. Driving Miss Daisy (1989) won four Academy Awards: Best Picture, Best Actress, Best Makeup, and Best Writing Adapted Screenplay.


The movie takes place in Atlanta, Georgia--The Peach State--and is filled with food references ripe for the picking (couldn't resist!). Choose from homemade pickles, grits and gravy, canned salmon, pork chops, ambrosia salad, deviled eggs, Coke in glass bottles, shelled peas, fried chicken & biscuits, iced tea, okra, garden tomatoes, pumpkin pie or anything peachy and you have a winning dinner match-up.

Movie Rating
Plot: 4 stars
Cinematography: 4 stars
Acting: 4.25 stars
Average: 4+ stars

We award Driving Miss Daisy the prize for:
BEST DRIVING MUSIC
The little ditty that plays off and on throughout the movie while Miss Daisy and Hoke are in the car sticks with you and fits the mood perfectly.

I took a simply Southern tack when choosing the meal and am excited to finally be able to share a smittenkitchen (sk) recipe on the blog. Seriously, I read her blog and want to make every. single. thing. The handful of sk recipes that have been tried in my kitchen have been PERFECT and I'm happy the stars aligned so that I can pass along a great blog link to our readers.

Corn Bread Salad. Sounds overly simple, maybe even soggy--right? Wrong.

WOW. This unimposing dish was so delightful! I cannot even imagine how other-worldly it would be if we had garden fresh tomatoes on hand to throw in. Honestly, the early July tomatoes found in the store were pretty darn good anyway. Due to a time crunch, we used Whole Foods cornbread from the bakery--a winning substitute that shaved a solid 20-30 mins off the meal prep with mildly sweet, perfectly crumby results.

Dinner Rating
Movie Relevance: 3.5 stars
Taste: 4.5 stars
Average: 4 stars


CORN BREAD SALAD
Adapted (only a bit!) from this recipe
Serves 4

Ingredients
3 cups of 1-inch cornbread cubes (Whole Foods bakery cornbread is great)
1 1/2 pounds ripe tomatoes (4 to 6 medium)
6 cups roughly torn sturdy fresh lettuce, such as Bibb, butter, or Boston
2 cups arugula
1/2 large Vidalia onion, trimmed, peeled, sliced crosswise as thinly as possible and separated into rings
1 recipe Buttermilk-Lime Dressing (below)

Directions
Toast cornbread cubes until lightly browned, about 7 minutes (we used the toaster oven).

Chop the tomatoes into 1-inch pieces, discarding any large seedy globs.

Place lettuce, greens, 3 cups of toasted corn bread, onion, and tomatoes in a large bowl. Drizzle with buttermilk dressing, season with salt and pepper and toss gently until the dressing is evenly distributed. Serve immediately.

Do ahead: If you won't be eating the salad within 30 minutes of preparing it, keep the corn bread, salad, and dressing separate and toss just before serving.


BUTTERMILK-LIME DRESSING

Ingredients
3/4 cup whole buttermilk
5 TB freshly squeezed lime juice (or bottled in a pinch!)
2 TB olive oil
1 TB apple cider vinegar
1 TB honey
1/4 cup finely minced fresh basil
1/4 cup finely minced fresh parsley
1/4 finely minced green onions
1/2 tsp salt, plus more as needed, to taste

Directions
Whisk all of the ingredients together in a small bowl until combined. Will keep covered tightly and stored in the refrigerator for up to two days.

7.07.2011

Fail-Safe (1964)

Hope everyone enjoyed some breathtaking fireworks this past Independence Day! There certainly was nothing "spectacular" about watching this week's movie: Fail-Safe. I am not sure if the beautiful weather outside was a distraction that clouded my judgement of this film, or perhaps my generation requires more thrilling action sequences, brilliant color, and epic sound in its thrillers, but I was ready to turn this film off about halfway through. Our Atomic Burgers, however, were sensational!



A little more about Fail-Safe for you movie buffs: 

1. The plot follows American bombers that are sent to deliver a nuclear attack on Moscow, but it is a mistake due to an electrical error. Tension between the two countries climb as they try to avert nuclear disaster.

2. There are two versions of this movie. The 1964 version directed by Sidney Lumet and the 200 version starring George Clooney, directed by Stephen Frears.

3. The day after we watched this film, the New York Times published an article regarding the death of Robert H. Widmer, the designer of the bombers that helped to enforce the strategic balance with the Soviet Union during the cold war.



Movie Rating: 
Plot: 2 stars
Cinematography: 2 stars
Acting: 1.5 stars
Average: 1.8 stars



ATOMIC burgers a.k.a. Andouille and Beef Burgers with Spicy Mayo and Caramelized Onions

INGREDIENTS:
Spicy Mayo
3/4 cup mayonnaise
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon Cajun or Creole seasoning blend
1/4 teaspoon hot pepper sauce

Burgers
1/2 pound andouille sausage
3/4 cup pecans, toasted, chopped
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1 1/2 pounds ground beef

6 large hamburger buns
8 ounces crumbled blue cheese


Caramelized Onions
1 1/2 pound onions, thinly sliced
2 tablespoons olive oil plus more for brushing grill rack
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon golden brown sugar

DIRECTIONS:
For mayonnaise:
Mix all ingredients in a small bowl. Cover and chill.

For burgers:
Toss first 4 ingredients in a large bowl. Add beef; blend gently. Shape mixture into six 1/2 inch thick patties.



For onions:
Toss onions and next three ingredients in a large skillet. Cook until onions are golden, stirring often, about 25 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.



Brush grill rack with olive oil. Grill buns, cut side down, until golden about 2 minutes. Transfer buns to work surface. Grill burgers until brown on bottom, about 3 minutes. Turn over, sprinkle with cheese. Grill until burgers are cooked to desired doneness. Spread mayonnaise on cut side of bun tops, place onions on top of burger. We served with a side of salad.


Dinner Rating: 
Movie Relevance: 3.75 stars
Taste: 4.75 stars
Average: 4.25 stars