Happy Holidays!

Good morning ye bunch of scurvy dogs!

As we wake this morning, may there be laughter and smiles in your homes!

I be enjoying my traditional Christmas breakfast of quiche, hot cocoa, & A Christmas Carol!

So I wish you all a Merry Christmas, a Blessed Yule, a Happy Hanukkah, and/or a Happy Kwanzaa!

May your hunger be sated, your thirst be quenched, and your hearts be filled with love!

Happy Thanksgiving!

From me to all of ye, a very Happy Thanksgiving!

May your bellies be full, your laughs be deep, & your cups never empty!

Happy Halloween! I'm back with a new recipe! Beetlejuice Pasta!

     Sorry for being MIA for a while but I had some personal things I had to take care of and it took up way more of my time than I would have liked.  However, I be back and am coming at you with a brand new recipe!

   And what better time to come back than me favorite holiday, Halloween! Also known as Samhain, All Saint's Eve, Dia de los Muertos, etc. So today I bring you a new recipe inspired by one of my all-time favorite Halloween movies, Beetlejuice!

Beetlejuice Pasta

by

The Pirate Chef

Ingredients:

2 lbs Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breasts

2 - 8.8 oz packages of B&W Farfalle pasta (I used Antico Mulino from World Market)

8.1 oz Jar of Classico Basil Pesto Sauce

Steak n Shake Steakburger Seasoning

Directions:

1) Start up your grill.

2) Season the chicken with the Steakburger seasoning

3) Once the grill is ready, place the chicken and cook till done.

4) While the chicken is cooking, get the water going for the pasta.

5) Cook the pasta per the directions, or if using the same pasta I did, it took about 6-8 minutes.

6) When the chicken is done, remove from grill and let rest for 5 minutes.

7) Slice chicken into bite size piece.

8) Drain pasta, put back in put and add chicken.

9) Add pesto to taste & stir until fully combined. (I used about 5 heaping tablespoons)

10) Enjoy!

I hope those of you who try this recipe enjoy it as much as I did!

Labor Day, Hurricane, & Rum

     So I'm sitting down, having just showered after battening down the hatches as hurricane Dorian looms on Florida's horizon this Labor Day, and think how nice a good drink would be right now.  The problem being that I didn't buy any of my normal accoutrements to go with some rum.  Not wanting to fight the panicked hordes at the stores, I know I have to have something in the fridge that I can make a decent drink with.  Lady Luck shined upon me and I came up with this nice little cocktail!

The Red Sky

by

The Pirate Chef

Ingredients:

     Rocks glass

     3 Ice Cubes

     1 shot Spiced Rum

     Vitaminwater Fire

Directions:

     1) Place the ice cubes in the rocks glass.

     2) Add in a shot of your favorite spiced rum

     3) Top it off with Vitamin Water Fire

     4) Stir & enjoy!

     The Vitaminwater Fire is a really unique drink as it's a spicy watermelon-lime drink that is not only cool & refreshing, but adds in a hint of heat on the back end of it.  This combined with the flavors of a spiced rum, make for a very unique flavor mashup that combines a hot summer day enjoying a nice cool watermelon, some homemade grog, and a touch of heat to get your taste buds going.  So will this Red Sky be a warning to you or result in some delight?

Good Road Ciderworks - Charlotte, NC

     A while back, I was visiting Charlotte, NC on work and decided to explore one night.  I stumbled upon Good Road Ciderworks before grabbing some dinner and what a selection they had! Not just of ciders, but also of meads.  They had so many, I couldn't decide what I wanted so I went with a 5 sample flight.

     From left to right, they're the Waymaker, the Blackberry Pitch, the Frolicking Fig (Anniversary Release), the 10 Penny Lane, & the Avogadro's Trail.

     The Waymaker is an apple ginger cider that has a nice 6.7% ABV to it. It's a nice crisp apple cider with a healthy ginger kick to it.  I could drink this all the time, it was really refreshing and was absolutely delicious.

     The Blackberry Pitch was actually one of my least favorite, even though it sounded amazing.  The mix of blackberries and apples host a 6% ABV and the flavor was really well done with a beautiful blend of apples and blackberries.  The problem I had with it was that it was too tart for my taste, it could have used a little more sweetness for my taste to even out that tartness of the blackberries.

     The Frolicking Fig (Anniversary Release) is a delicious mead with complex flavors and boasted an impressive 12.8% ABV!  It's a full-bodied and semi-sweet mead that combines the spice & warmth of a medium-dark honey with the toast and spice of being aged in a Doc Porter Rye barrel, all layered with the flavors of figs.  I really enjoyed this one and it would make a great holiday drink or after-dinner drink following a Thanksgiving or Christmas dinner.

     The 10 Penny Lane is one of the more interesting drinks I've had.  It's what's known as a braggot, which is a hybrid creation that combines the best parts of beer and mead.  They combined several honeys and several malts to bring this to life with a 10% ABV.  This one combine fruit and toffee with the bitterness of beer and sweetness of mead.  This was an impressive blend and a great beverage for lovers of beers and mead.

     The Avogadro's Trail is a classic mead with a twist, the honey is from Avocado blossoms. This honey led to a mead with notes of browned butter, caramel, and apricot flavors with a nice 7.5% ABV. While it may not be a very strong beverage, the flavor composition was well-balanced and was very smooth.  I could see relaxing by a fire while drinking this.

     There was one other mead I tried while I was there, and brought a growler of it home with me, the T'ej.  This delicious mead was a new experience for me as it's not the traditional mead people are familiar with but is based on an Ethiopean mead recipe. It blends African honey with hops to create this national drink that boasts a 10.5% ABV.  While most meads are traditionally on the sweet side, this one is more of a medium body with a woodsy taste with hints of tea & black pepper.  These flavors all blend together with the honey to create a mead that reminds me of an adult version of Earl Grey with a dollop of honey.  one of the more savory meads I've had and truly enjoy.

     I really enjoyed my trip there and look forward to my next trip to Charlotte to try more of their products and bring home another growler of one of their creations!

Independence Day - 4th of July

     A happy Independence Day to the lot of you!  Today marks the 243rd anniversary of America's independence! May your drinks be cold, your food be filling, and the celebration be grand!

     On a side note, please remember that animals and some of our veterans will not be handling the fireworks well tonight so think of them before you set off anything loud & explosive tonight.  Make sure your animals are inside the house, not outside.  If you are setting off fireworks where you live, just make sure that your veteran neighbors are ok with it as well, & if they are, invite them to come join the show!

Happy Memorial Day

     As Memorial Day visits us again, I ask that you all take a moment to reflect on all of the rights, privileges, and freedoms we have.  As you do so, think not of those who are currently serving in our military or those who have served our country.  Instead, think of those who gave their all in defense of our country and are no longer with us today.  A happy Memorial Day to everyone and a deep thank you to the memory of those who served and are with us no longer.

Chunky Turkey Pasta

     I know it's been a while since I posted but I have been very busy, so to kind of make up for it, I have a new recipe for you all.  For those of you who either don't eat much red meat or are trying to cut down, this has become one of my favorite dishes to make that's packed full of flavor and very filling to boot!

Chunky Turkey Pasta

by

The Pirate Chef

Ingredients:

1 lb of Pasta (whatever style you like, I used fusilli this time)

1 lb of Ground Turkey

1 jar of Bertolli Rustic Cut Roasted Garlic sauce

10oz package of Frozen Chopped Spinach

Directions:

1) Start cooking your pasta per the directions on the packaging.

2) While the pasta is cooking, pour the sauce, 1/4 jar of water (this is important to keep the dish moist) & spinach into a small saucepan and heat up over medium heat. Stirring repeatedly to break up the spinach.

3) Brown the ground turkey in a medium frying pan, making sure it's thoroughly cooked.

4) Once the turkey is done, add to the sauce once it's heated up while the pasta finishes cooking.

5) When the pasta is done cooking, drain it in a colander.

6) Put the sauce in the pot with the pasta and stir gently till combined.

7) Serve, add grated cheese if you want, and enjoy!

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

I want to wish you all a happy St. Patrick's Day!

     I hope you all had a good day today and celebrated with friends and/or family.  I didn't do much but I did celebrate my usual tradition by having steak, potatoes, and a Guinness.  I started this tradition many years ago in memory of a dear friend of mine, he passed away and this was one of his favorite meals.

     I seasoned my steak with Montreal steak seasoning yesterday and let it sit in the fridge for about 24 hrs, seasoning should be done at least 40 minutes prior to cooking up to overnight.  For the potatoes, I did something different and tried a recipe for crispy smashed potatoes.  After boiling, you smash them with something flat and brush olive oil on them, then season with salt, pepper, rosemary, and thyme.  Once they are seasoned, you bake them at 450° for about 20 minutes or until they are brown and crispy on top.  As you can see in the picture, I followed this up with a nice cold pint of Guinness.  I hope you all enjoy your St. Patrick Day meals and try not to get into too much trouble today.

Beer Brats & Whiskey Glazed Cabbage

     Top o' the morning, err, evening to you all!  With St. Patrick's Day coming up, I was inspired to cook up an Irish-inspired dish prior to the holiday.  So I slightly modified a recipe from Alton Brown's own cookbook for the cabbage part of this dish. This dish has a wonderful taste that speaks of an Irish-American background and one I will be cooking again in the future.  I enjoyed this meal with a nice pint of Guinness draught and was pleasantly full after eating a bowl of it.

Beer Brats & Whiskey Glazed Cabbage

By

The Pirate Chef (inspired by Alton Brown)

Ingredients:

     1 Package of Beer Bratwursts

     3 Tbls Unsalted Butter

     1 Lb Green Cabbage (cored & shredded)

     1 Tsp Fine Kosher Salt

     1/2 Tsp Ground Black Pepper

     2 Minis Irish Whiskey

Directions:

     1) Melt butter in a 12-inch saute pan with high sides over med-high heat until butter begins to brown.

     2) To shallow pan, add 2-3 pats of butter and melt over medium heat.

     3) Add beer brats to shallow pan and cook for 6-8 mins, turning every few minutes to make sure no side gets burnt.

     4) Add cabbage, salt, & pepper to pan with browned butter and saute 7-10 mins, stirring occasionally until tender & lightly browned.

     5) Turn off heat for pan with cabbage & deglaze the pan with whiskey, scraping up the brown bits on the bottom, stirring everything together thoroughly.

     6) Slice brats on the diagonal and spread over the cabbage in each plate.

     7) Serves 4-6 people.

     I added more whiskey to the original recipe, which only used 2oz and added the sliced beer brats for a nice light meal. I used a link and a half of the beer brats for my own bowl as is pictured above, but you can use as little as one link if you want to stretch it out a bit more. I will be adding pictures and another recipe next week, after St. Patrick's Day for you all as well.

Foodie Love in Charlotte, NC

     Good day everyone! I just recently got back from a trip to Charlotte, NC and it's such a great place to visit if you're a foodie or just a lover of good food in general. I went to 3 places that were just amazing.

     The first place I visited was The Peculiar Rabbit, a gastropub with a really unique take on some classic dishes. The Peculiar Rabbit is part of 3 businesses there, the other two locations are The Rabbit Hole (an entertainment venue w/ live bands) and Jackalope Jacks (a sports bar).  I had a beer and tried their Carolina Poutine appetizer.

      Their Carolina Poutine is a NC take on a Canadian classic comfort food and was absolutely delicious and something I could eat all the time. We start with crispy seashore fries, which are their fresh cut fries with skins still on. On top of that is their queso fundido sauce, a blend of melted cheese and Mexican spices, and their shredded cider-braised short ribs.  The short ribs were super tender and had a wonder flavor due to the cider used to braise them. The whole dish is topped with a house-made Carolina gold bbq sauce and scallions. The whole dish was absolutely wonderful and the flavors all worked perfectly together without overpowering each other and some thing I would definitely get again.

     The next night, I went to Dish, a restaurant featured in an episode of Guy Fieri's Diners, Drive-Ins, & Dives.  They specialize in amazing Southern food with an atmosphere that's really homey and comfortable.  So I went for a Southern staple, chicken & dumplings with a cup of sweet corn & potato chowder on the side.

     While the portions don't look big, the food is so filling that it more than makes up for it's size.  The chowder was like a bowl of happiness with both the sweet corn and potatoes maintaining their firmness while swimming in pleasant cream broth with a healthy amount of pepper that gave it a nice twang.  The chicken and dumplings were so delicious that they put Cracker barrel's to shame. The shredded chicken was moist and flavorful and the dumplings were tender and maintained their shape. The scallions were a nice touch and added another dimension of flavor to the dish, as did the black pepper they added as well.  The meal came with a deviled egg and a delicious homemade biscuit that was brushed with honey butter.  All in all, a very good meal and full of comforting foods.  I look forward to going back and trying something else.

     One of my last meals I had up there this trip was at Sushi Guru at Plaza Midwood in Charlotte, NC.  Now I didn't have sushi as I was in the mood for a nice bowl of ramen and they didn't disappoint.  They have 4 types of ramen dishes on their menu; tonkotsu shio, shoyu, miso, & yasai.  Each one of these dishes use a different broth and the yasai is the only one to have different ingredients in the dish itself with a focus on vegetables and no meat products whatsoever.  I went with the classic tonkotsu ramen which was so wonderful and warmed me up from the inside out.

     This soup was so delicious and it warmed me up from the inside with it's rich broth and delicious ingredients.  The tonkotsu ramen started with a gentle and slightly salty white tonkotsu broth that was topped with some tender roasted pork fillets, a sheet of nori seaweed, some baby bok choy halves, roasted garlic, and naruto cured fish surimi. I mixed it all up so the nori would soften up and the garlic would get mixed throughout the ramen.  Each ingredient was cooked perfectly and was perfectly cut so that it could be eaten with chopsticks and the spoon was only needed to finish off the broth.  They also have a rather extensive sake list and would definitely be a place to check out if you love sake. This was one of the best ramen dishes I've had yet and I want to try at least a couple of their other ones and maybe some sushi as well.

     Charlotte, NC has so many incredible places to eat that it would probably take me a couple of years to try everything out there that looks good. That's not even taking into account all the breweries and distilleries in the metropolitan area as well.  If you get to go there for something, don't hit the chain restaurants, explore and try something new!

Valentine's Day & Artichoke Hearts

     This Thursday, we will have the onsalught of candy & flowers, jewelry & cards as Valentine's Day lays siege upon the hearts of many a souls.  Regardless of how one may feel about it, this day is one for those in love to express their feelings towards the people they care about the most.

     So, in honor of the upcoming holiday and for those of you wanting to flex your culinary muscle and make a romantic meal for your loved one(s), I bring you a favorite side dish of mine.  Fried artichoke hearts!

     Why fried artichoke hearts?  Well, to start, because fried foods are delicious and if done right, aren't as bad as you might think.  As far as the artichoke hearts go, not only are they delicious but they are actually a very good food for a romantic meal between two lovers.  Legend has it that they are a wonderful aphrodisiac (what isn't, haha) with a history dating back to Catherine de Medici & Henry II back in the mid-16th century.  But now on to the recipe!

Fried Artichoke Hearts

by

The Pirate Chef

Ingredients:

1 can of halved artichoke hearts (not marinated)

2 Eggs

Milk

Italian breadcrumbs
Oil for pan frying (I like to use a 50/50 blend of vegetable & olive oil

Directions:
1) Open can of artichoke hearts and drain well
2) Whisk together eggs & an equal amount of milk, making an egg wash
3) Fully coat each artichoke hearts in the egg wash
4) Toss artichoke hearts in Italian bread crumbs, making sure they are fully covered
5) In a large saute pan, pour in enough oil to come up about 1/4 up the side of the pan and heat over medium heat (temperatures may vary so you may need to go lower or higher depending on your stove, don't be afraid to lower the temp if you experience too much splattering)
6) Once the oil is hot, carefully place breaded artichoke hearts into the oil, do not crowd the pan
7) Turn the artichoke hearts over at least once during cooking to make sure of even cooking
8) Once both sides are golden brown, transfer to a paper towel and let sit while cooking the rest of the artichoke hearts so the excess oil is absorbed by the paper towels
9) Enjoy!


*Hint* One of my favorite tools for frying is a cooking spider, allows you to carefully pick up any fried food and drain off some of the oil.  The Chinese have been using them centuries and so do many chefs.

Instagram Account

     To celebrate the creation of the new The Pirate Chef IG account, enjoying some Delirium Noel in my Piraat glass! https://t.co/8TzhBoZfOw

A New Year and a New Review

     Happy New Year's to all of you and to mark it, here's a new review for you as well.  Today, I will be reviewing Heavy Seas' Peg Leg imperial Stout.

     Now, I'm a lover of many types of beer, but stouts are definitely one of my favorites!  This stout has a great full-body taste and was a smooth and very enjoyable.  When I poured it into my favorite beer glass, a tulip-shaped glass from Piraat beer, it came out a nice reddish-brown with a tan head.  As I like to do, I took a nice sniff of the beer shortly after pouring it and picked up the aroma of roasted coffee beans with hints of chocolate, a common note amongst stouts due to the priority of malt over hops.  The hops that they use help to temper down some of the sweetness from the malts and keeps this from coming out like a dessert beer.

     This beer would pair very well with a nice espresso rubbed steak and a side of brussel sprouts w/ bacon and shallots. I definitely enjoyed this Peg Leg imperial stout and look forward to trying other beers from them as well.