Well, as expected there are not any new Good Eats episodes during the Christmas cable shuffle. Since cable stations like to jumble up their schedules a bit during holiday seasons I put together a short list of what's happening with Good Eats this week. So, if you're like me and don't have anything special going on for Christmas, at least you can enjoy some Alton Brown cheer. This is from my cable channel guide since Food Network has burned me so many times in the past. Times are EST and i didn't list the late night repeats.
Good Eats Coming Up: 12/22 - 12/25
Monday: 11PM Cobbled Together
Tuesday: 11PM Cran Opening
Wednesday: 8PM Behind the Eat Special / 11PM A Beautiful Grind
Thursday: 8PM The Cookie Clause / 11PM It's a Wonderful Cake
Friday: 8PM Dip Madness / 11PM Switched on Baklava
Monday, December 22, 2008
Sunday, December 21, 2008
Alton Brown's Recipes are more than just Good Entertainment
According to my latest poll (thanks to everybody who voted) it looks like quite a few Good Eats fans actually try out the recipes Alton cooks up. There were a couple of diehards who claim to test every one of Alton's concoctions, but I was more surprised not to find more people just watching Good Eats for the entertainment value. Let's face it; it takes a lot of time and effort to prepare a meal you've never served before.
I have to admit, I haven't tried nearly as many as I would like. However, now that I'm a stay at home parent, cooking has returned as one of my favorite hobbies. Alton does come up with some great stuff, but sometimes I get intimidated by his long processes and decide I'd rather buy it than make it.
Dutch baby: Saturday morning treat
Ribs: failed first attempt (didn't taste quite right)
Baklava: I'm not going to the store with a cooler full of ice cream to buy some dough :-)
I have to admit, I haven't tried nearly as many as I would like. However, now that I'm a stay at home parent, cooking has returned as one of my favorite hobbies. Alton does come up with some great stuff, but sometimes I get intimidated by his long processes and decide I'd rather buy it than make it.
Dutch baby: Saturday morning treat
Ribs: failed first attempt (didn't taste quite right)
Baklava: I'm not going to the store with a cooler full of ice cream to buy some dough :-)
Thursday, December 18, 2008
Alton Brown Videos
There are some good videos over at Serious Eats featuring Alton brown. On this Chewing the Fat series we get some insight from Alton on donuts, fried chicken, and his thoughts on the connection of race and class to food among other topics. These sessions are intermixed with clips from Feasting on Asphalt II and, obviously, the inspiration behind the discussions. Damn! It makes me want to sit in from of the tube and watch the entire FOA series again
p.s. If you were as dissappointed as me about the lack of Alton commentary on the FOA II DVDs, this may help make up for it in some small way.
p.s. If you were as dissappointed as me about the lack of Alton commentary on the FOA II DVDs, this may help make up for it in some small way.
Friday, December 12, 2008
Alton Brown Performance in Miami December 13th
Alton Brown will be in Miami at the Adrienne Arsht Center Saturday, December 13th at 8:00pm for a cooking demonstration and limited meet and greet for VIP ticket holders. Tickets range in price from $25 all the way up to $150 for the VIP package.
Thursday, December 11, 2008
Alton Brown and Chris Cognac versus the Monster Burger
A friend asked me about the picture I posted of the police officer attacking Alton Brown with a giant hamburger. I had a good laugh; I guess it does look a bit like a case of food police brutality. I'm sure most of you recognized the scene from the final day of Feasting on Asphalt, though some may not be familiar with the details. The burger is the Monster Royal from B&R Old Fashion Burgers(FOA clip on their site)and the officer is Chris Cognac.
Chris is a full time police officer in the LA area and also a popular food critic writing reviews for the local newspaper and other sources. He also hosted the Hungry Detective series on Food Network and has been on Iron Chef America; reruns of HD air intermittently during the morning hours. I had a chance to talk to him on a Good Eats forum and he was as friendly and genuine as he appears on TV.
Tuesday, December 9, 2008
New Good Eats Poll
Something I've always wondered: how many Alton Brown fans test out his Good Eats recipes? Personally, I have never had enough time to crank through a lot of them, but I have made a few that really piqued my interest. One of my current favorite things to make is the Dutch baby. It has become a regular weekend ritual around here when I'm working.
So, has Alton Brown had an influence in your kitchen? Vote in the latest poll.
So, has Alton Brown had an influence in your kitchen? Vote in the latest poll.
Monday, December 8, 2008
Cran Opening and Alton Brown's hair
Well, looking back Cran Opening is an episode from last season that I missed. I was glad I caught it this time around since it was one of the more entertaining and informative shows.
My favorite Good Eats episodes are those which feature Alton Brown on location. Actual location, not a set made to look like he's somewhere. Don't get me wrong; a big part of Good Eats is the cheesy props and characters and ads a great deal to the entertainment value. A real location, however, enhances the educational value since you get more than just Alton's monologue. The segment shot at the cranberry farm and processing facility in Massachusetts which Alton visited added a lot of content that his monologue could not have with a simple backdrop. Alton then skillfully runs in a cartoon version of the peg-leg cranberry farmer to describe and provide the history behind the real equipment.
The cooking segment content was a good mix of culinary science and multiple applications; always a plus. Sometimes I don't know how he squeezes so much into 20 minutes! Being that I just made a similar cranberry sauce for Thanksgiving, with a little nip of orange liquor, I think I may go the granita/cosmopolitan route for the berries I have sitting in the fridge.
The cranberry episode also had a few classic Alton Brown touches. The scene where he creates a 30 ounce can with some duct tape, foil, and two empty cans with an A-Team themed interlude was hilarious. I also detected the opening bars of She Blinded Me with Science during a cut to commercial. Sadly, the Thomas Dolby era may have come to a close with Alton's long hair style which brings me to the poll results! OK, so you've all had your say about how you like Alton's hair and there was a definite preference.
First off: the long hair. There are some things that just don't work well and long, thinning hair is right up there. In my opinion it makes Alton look older; which doesn't seem to be a positive factor for his energetic style.
In second place: the medium messy do he's been sporting for the past few years. I think this fits him best; it's fun but not too fun for his age. As a bonus, when he's been wearing a motorcycle helmet for a while it looks pretty much the same.
My favorite Good Eats episodes are those which feature Alton Brown on location. Actual location, not a set made to look like he's somewhere. Don't get me wrong; a big part of Good Eats is the cheesy props and characters and ads a great deal to the entertainment value. A real location, however, enhances the educational value since you get more than just Alton's monologue. The segment shot at the cranberry farm and processing facility in Massachusetts which Alton visited added a lot of content that his monologue could not have with a simple backdrop. Alton then skillfully runs in a cartoon version of the peg-leg cranberry farmer to describe and provide the history behind the real equipment.
The cooking segment content was a good mix of culinary science and multiple applications; always a plus. Sometimes I don't know how he squeezes so much into 20 minutes! Being that I just made a similar cranberry sauce for Thanksgiving, with a little nip of orange liquor, I think I may go the granita/cosmopolitan route for the berries I have sitting in the fridge.
The cranberry episode also had a few classic Alton Brown touches. The scene where he creates a 30 ounce can with some duct tape, foil, and two empty cans with an A-Team themed interlude was hilarious. I also detected the opening bars of She Blinded Me with Science during a cut to commercial. Sadly, the Thomas Dolby era may have come to a close with Alton's long hair style which brings me to the poll results! OK, so you've all had your say about how you like Alton's hair and there was a definite preference.
The Hair Poll Results!
First off: the long hair. There are some things that just don't work well and long, thinning hair is right up there. In my opinion it makes Alton look older; which doesn't seem to be a positive factor for his energetic style.
Only 8% voted for the long hair. Sorry Alton; you'll have to cut it now.
23% voted for messy in moderation
And the winner: Alton's earlier short and spiky look which has lent itself to the Thomas Dolby conspiracy. In my opinion it was good, but he's outgrown it now, but this was by far the most popular.
A whopping 62% favored Alton with spikes. Maybe it's time for him to hit the road with Guy Fieri?
Good Eats Episode Tonight: Cran Opening
Whew! The holiday crush has been keeping me busy lately! While running around trying to clean the kitchen, run some laundry, and keep and eye on my daughter rolling around and chewing on everything within reach I realized it was Monday already!
Monday! Time for some new Good Eats adventures! Tonight's feature is cranberries. I don't recall this episode though it is listed as a season 11 show on the Food Network website; maybe it slipped past me or could it be one of those strange cable season delays that they like to confuse us with? Anyhow: cranberries.
I'm picturing Alton Brown up to his waist in a bog with Deb Duchon ala the Ocean Spray commercials. Maybe he'll pick up a new juice contract! Looks like we're in for a treat with a cranberry cosmopolitan recipe mixed with some homemade cranberry granita. Then, of course, the holiday cranberry sauce. Luckily, I already have a bag of cranberries in the fridge.
Tonight's Good Eats Schedule:
8:00pm The Alton Crown Affair (lamb crown roast)
8:30pm Cran Opening
11:00pm The Icing Man Cometh (buttercream and ganache)
Monday! Time for some new Good Eats adventures! Tonight's feature is cranberries. I don't recall this episode though it is listed as a season 11 show on the Food Network website; maybe it slipped past me or could it be one of those strange cable season delays that they like to confuse us with? Anyhow: cranberries.
I'm picturing Alton Brown up to his waist in a bog with Deb Duchon ala the Ocean Spray commercials. Maybe he'll pick up a new juice contract! Looks like we're in for a treat with a cranberry cosmopolitan recipe mixed with some homemade cranberry granita. Then, of course, the holiday cranberry sauce. Luckily, I already have a bag of cranberries in the fridge.
Tonight's Good Eats Schedule:
8:00pm The Alton Crown Affair (lamb crown roast)
8:30pm Cran Opening
11:00pm The Icing Man Cometh (buttercream and ganache)
Thursday, December 4, 2008
Woot offers Shun's Alton Angles 7 piece set for $249 today
Woot.com is offering Shun's Alton Angles 7 piece set for $249.99 today!
Not bad; the 8 inch chef's knife is listed at over $100 on Alton's site and at Kershaw.
In the box:
Not bad; the 8 inch chef's knife is listed at over $100 on Alton's site and at Kershaw.
In the box:
- DM0721 Angled Vegetable Knife 3 ½”
- DM0725 Angled Paring Knife 4”
- DM0726 Angled Utility Knife 6”
- DM0729 Angled Chef’s Knife 6”
- DM0730 Angled Chef’s Knife 8”
- DM0731 Angled Santoku 5 ½”
- 11 Slot Bamboo Knife Block
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