I am asked regularly “how do you become a chef”? So I thought I would take you on the fast forward version of the journey a young eager cook must travel before he or she becomes a chef. Ha, fast forward, like do you even remember the VCR??? Sorry got caught in a 80’s glitch for a second…  totally radical! As we set out on this expedition, I think it is important to understand the difference between a cook and a chef and along the way you may smell the how! Many people believe that you are a chef once you have graduated from an accredited Culinary Arts program and have received your bachelor’s degree in the Culinary Arts. This route is a good option for some but that makes you as much a chef as parking in your garage makes you a mechanic. Becoming a chef is so much more than a punch list of achievements, it is a position of responsibility not all can or want to handle. To be a cook you must obviously know how to cook, unfortunately, I have met plenty of lousy cooks in my career, but know how to cook they did. Albeit bad it was still cooking! These are often the individuals that have landed in this industry maybe by choice or by default and don’t really care what, who or how they are serving food, they are just doing what it takes to collect a paycheck. Unfortunately, this type of cook generally works in a system that does not expect more from them than they are already offering. I believe the root of being a chef starts with being a great cook, you have heard the saying “the cream rises to the top”, well it does, literally and figuratively. Continue Reading

I love that spring has almost sprung and a rainbow of flavors and ingredients are bursting from the ground and artfully displayed at our local markets.

Abundant shades of green announce spring’s arrival like a royal herald and the notes of his trumpet are delicious fava beans, asparagus, fennel, spring onions and nettles.

And if you’re saying to your self what the . ..? Nettles…? Yes, stinging nettles, uber delicious, loaded with good-for-you vitamin C, calcium, potassium, flavonoids, histamine and serotonin — all the great chemicals one needs to re-energize after a cold winter and to combat spring allergies. Continue Reading

Did you know a photographer tells you to say “cheese” before snapping a picture because the pronunciation causes you to do something with your mouth that resembles a smile? Also, the absurdity of it can cause a genuine smile.

What is it about cheese that is so good? With hundreds of varieties ranging from milk type, to age, shape, region, firmness, fat content, additives, the cheesemakers themselves, you could eat a cheese a day for a year and not eat every cheese available.

If variety is the spice of life then cheese is certainly the life of any party. Whether you like creamy or dry, firm or semi-soft, pungent or subtle, there is a cheese for every occasion.

In a world of CEOs, Twitter handles and usernames, there is a title for every job out there except for maybe the cheesemaker. They’re just called “cheesemaker.” We could get a little Frenchie French and call them fromagere, but that still translates to cheesemaker. I thought that was interesting. Continue Reading

With the bitter taste of defeat still fresh on the tongues of all of us San Francisco 49er fans, it seemed only appropriate to talk about tongues and bitter foods. So with a painful acknowledgement to my few but victorious Baltimore Ravens friends, congratulations and here we go!

Tongues are a rather amazing organ. Not only do they allow us to phonetically articulate, they are the taste factory by which we enjoy the flavor of foods. Tongues also serve as a tool to maneuver and manipulate foods as we chew, then usher that macerated food down our throats on its way to our stomachs. Tongues act as a natural toothbrush to clean our teeth and are critical when it comes to the all important art of smooching! However, I will reserve any further discussion in regard to that function for the after-hours column.

On average, the human tongue has 2,000 to 8,000 taste buds, where receptors for taste detect the five known tastes: salty, sour, bitter, sweet and umami. As the foods mix with saliva, the receptors receive the data and send that information to our brain. Continue Reading

Talking about our favorite food… BACON!!!

We had a tremendous time… The energy of the Live Audiance… the Lovely and Beautiful Rachael Ray by my side… and plates full of Bacon!!! it was a good day! Met Kevin Bacon back stage… my six degrees of seperation immediatly went to Zero!! Thanks for having me Rachael…

What? You have never had bone marrow either? Let me splane you something: Marrow is one of the purest forms of natural decadence and pure beef flavor you will find. Once thought to be sinful because of its high-cholesterol content, this source of protein, rich in vitamins and minerals, is actually high in monounsaturated fats, which decrease LDL (bad) cholesterol levels. That is not to say that it is not high in fat, because it is. Fortunately, it is high in good-for-you fat and proteins. Some doctors even consider the good-for-youness of marow to be a brain food. Others even say that, like chicken noodle soup, marrow broth is great for warding of a cold and fighting back the sniffles. Continue Reading