Man, Are My Potatoes Stuffed

On Sunday night Bob was commissioned to cook a gourmet meal for a 6oth birthday party. It was an intimate party of four and the host and hostess asked Bob to develop the menu for the evening. Bob waited until Sunday morning to decide what to cook and being that Saturday night was spent with friends drinking Jameson and soda, we let our hangover guide our selections. It should come as no surprise then that we settled on the fancy version of a burger and fries; flank steak (red meat= hangover cure) with chimichurri, stuffed potatoes and a mozzarella salad. 

Actually, I have a confession to make, the private party Bob was cooking for was actually his parents and I. It was, however, really his Dad's birthday and Bob likes to cook for his parents' b-days in lieu of going to the mall and buying them gifts (who ever knows what to buy their parents anyway?). 

Let me now delve further into the menu. The potatoes were stuffed with  adult goodies (no, not those kind of goodies), appealing to both the traditional yet eclectic palate like; sour cream, horseradish, sauteed garlic, onions, bacon, jalapeño, avocado and pepper jack cheese.

The flank steak was marinated simply with just olive oil, salt and pepper, as to not compete with the chimichurri sauce. Picking up on the flavors in the potatoes, the sauce consisted of pureed jalapenos, cilantro, parsley, bay leaves, olive oil and a special vinegar ingredient that Bob will not divulge. It was the perfect accompaniment to the beef and I will find myself yearning for it next time I am forced to use that one ordinary and boring steak sauce, or even worse catsup. 

To balance out our meal we prepared a fine salad of tomatoes, bocconcini (small balls of cheese), basil, parsley, and green onions. Yes, a salad with cheese as the main ingredient is still a salad, in fact it is the best kind of salad you can have.

We paired our Argentinian-Mexican-Redneck American-Italian fusion meal with a bottle of Fuerza. It is a lovely Argentinian wine, available at Trader Joes for 3.99, if you can't find it at Trader Joes you can contact me and I'll give you my aunt's address in SLO. She has pretty much bought every bottle in California.

The host and hostess of the evening declared this meal, "One of Bob's best ever," and I would have to agree. FYI Bob is available to cook for private parties if the images from Sunday night are making you hungry, but there are some conditions. You must have a state-of-the-art kitchen, an ocean view and clean up after his super-sized mess.

This Economy Calls for Simpler Times

Simpler Times

Before the unemployment rate for California reached 8.4%, Bob and I enjoyed the occasional $8.00 a pint micro-brew. But now when we all know someone who has lost their job, or taken a considerable pay-cut, we cannot afford a beer that is described like this:

Bath Ales, Gem (England)
This beer pours a very attractive deep ruby/bronze colour, with a
thinnish, off-white head. The nose has a distinct malt and red fruit
bias, with only a gentle hoppiness. On the palate there is quite a
full-bodied, creamy weight to this beer, and an initial hint of fruity
raspberry or redcurrant sweetness. A dry, savoury quality of hops pushes through, and a rich, slightly treacly malt character. It finishes with good freshness, if perhaps a little underpowered and fading slightly. 4.8% ABV, 50cl.

In times like these we need to drink econo. Drinking econo means for $8.00 you get six beers and a pack of Marlboro Lights, not just 'A beer' and a set of tasting notes. Lucky for you, we have found the perfect beer to enjoy in this economy. It is the beer equivalent of 'Two Buck Chuck'. For $3.99 a six back, you can have some 'Simpler Times', or for $13.95 you can have A LOT 'Simpler Times'. Raid the shelves of your local Trader Joe's today, for a beer that hearkens back to the days when beer was simple; just hops, barley and good old fashioned H20. Who needs a beer with 'redcurrant sweetness' that shit's just frivolous and expensive!

AL OT Simpler Times