Andrew Mark Veety

Blumenhof Winery - Fall 2008

A little known fact about Missouri is that we used to be the wine production capital of the United States, circa 1880. Truth be told, Missouri used to be the capital of many things, but was unable to stop the manifest destiny leading people from the east to the west coast of America in the last half of the 1800's. That is why St. Louis is called the "Gateway to the West", and I often remark that we are the only city in the world that constructed a monument (The Gateway Arch) to people leaving.

Getting back to our wines, Missouri's climate, with its long, hot summers, good sun exposure, and thin rocky soil, is excellent for growing grapes. This combination led European immigrants, Germans and later Italians, to this part of the country where they started a wine making tradition that lives on to this day. 

While Missouri may no longer lay claim to the volume of wines produced, there are still many family vineyards across the countryside creating fine wines using the Cynthiana/Norton, Vignoles, Seyval, and Chambourcin grapes.

With the understanding that fall in Missouri is short and wonderful, we took what might be our last chance at enjoying the sun and fruits of our local producers labors. Loaded down with breads, cheeses, olives, artichoke hearts and San Marzano tomato's that I roasted and covered with Spanish olive oil, we shared food and bottle after bottle of the wines from the Blumenhof Vineyards & Winery.

Of the dozen or so wines they have right now, we really enjoyed the Devil's Den Red and the Vignoles. Both were perfect for an afternoon surrounded by the changing leaves, warm sun and good friends.

While there was more than enough food to go around, I managed to pull together a foraging party to scope out a small barbecue shack positioned near the tasting rooms. With a full stomach and a healthy attitude I ordered a rib eye sandwich, cut thin, grilled and served on a sesame seed hamburger roll.

A quick visit to the fixings bar resulted in an addition of onions, sauerkraut and a spicy German mustard. Upon returning to our table I topped what I will forever call a "travesty on bread" (a recycled line from a sandwich I used to order when I worked in White Plains, New York, and a story for another time) with my aforementioned roasted tomatoes. Delicious indeed, but owing more to the day than a sandwich I would go out of my way to create again.

Old Guy Extra Special Bitter

With the daytime temperatures in St. Louis dropping to around 65, its getting to be a great time to make home brewed beers. My first beer of the year is an Extra Special Bitter, or ESB. 

Extra Special Bitter belongs to the pale ale family of beers, but with a larger hop profile. Well known commercial versions of this beer are Boddington's and Fuller's ESB. While I kept to style for the base of my ESB with American pale and crystal malts, I included Munich malt, roasted barley and a small amount of rye to round out the grain bill. I'm excited about the addition of rye, which should add a understated spicy finish to this beer.

I started with a first wort hop addition of East Kent Golding's and followed up with additional doses of Golding's and Willamette hops though out the boil in 15 minute intervals.

I would like to have this beer in bottles by the middle of November and share with friends and family over the holidays. I hope you enjoy these pictures showing several parts of the brewing process.

A yeast starter at krausen. A yeast starter increases the number of active yeast cells and aids in kicking off a fast and healthy fermentation. I made this starter about 36 hours before brewing.

Grains rolling through a mill. The grains are cracked so water and enzymes can help the sugars contained within each grain "escape" during the mashing process. This sugar becomes the fermentable that the yeast above will consume in the production of beer.

Sparging the mash and collecting the first running of wort. You can think of sparging as washing the last of the sugars off the grain bed.

A first wort addition of whole hops, soaking as the wort comes to a boil. Hops can be thought of as the spice of beer. Added early in the boil, hops contribute a bitter flavor to beer. In the later stages of the boil hops contribute aroma. 

Collecting wort in a fermentation vessel. In a few weeks this wort will become a young beer, and a month or so after that, a beverage shared with friends.

Hey Cupcake

I recently got back from Austin, Texas were I attended a wedding and generally ate my way around the city and the outlying areas. Austin is an interesting city with a vibe that reminds me of Madison, Wisconsin and Burlington, Vermont. 

The wedding was on the weekend, but Sara and I took a few extra days to go antiquing, check out the local museums and see the Congress Avenue Bridge bat colony. However, with all the great things to do and see in Austin, I was most happy to discover a culture of truck and trailer food vendors ranging from Tex-Mex to gourmet cupcakes like they serve up at the Hey Cupcake! stand on South Congress.

The stand, which appears to be a renovated Airstream trailer is located in a lot on the 1600 block of South Congress. I would have missed this stand entirely as Sara and I walked back to our car if it wasn't for the large, rotating cupcake lighting up the night sky like a confectionery lighthouse.  

We tried the Vanilla Dream (vanilla bottom / vanilla top) and the appropriately named Standard (vanilla bottom / chocolate top). Both cakes were moist and tasty with more than ample frosting riding on top of each. Sara thought there was to much frosting whereas I thought it all came together in a perfect sugary mess. Had we not already eaten several times that afternoon and evening, I would have opted for a Whipper Snapper, where fresh whipped cream is shot into the center of your cupcake. Not bad for 2 bucks a pop.

While you are checking out Hey Cupcake, take in some of the local shops as well. Whereas most of downtown Austin has the feeling of any other gentrified and revitalized small city, this area of Congress seems to stay true to the artistic streak Austin is known for. Of particular interest is an antique shop called Uncommon Objects and a shop featuring Texas designers called Parts & Labor where I got this awesome shirt screen printed by local artist Will Heron.

'05 Burger Family Reunion. Genius.

Can Chicken Experiment 01 - A Delicious Failure

I've always enjoyed making beer can chicken on the grill. With a little practice this method for cooking a whole chicken produces a moist and flavorful bird that will leave your guests asking for seconds.

A while back I threw a barbeque for a dozen friends and I decided it might be fun to switch up this classic meal by not only using a twelve ounce can of Budweiser, but also a Coke, a Dr. Pepper and a Schweppes Ginger Ale as well. My goal was to have a taste test to see which liquid additive resulted in the best tasting bird.

I began by brining each chicken overnight in apple cider, kosher salt, brown sugar, fresh ginger, quartered oranges and allspice berries. The next day I dried and rubbed each bird with the spice mixture I described in my post about float trip picnic chicken. The goal was to treat each chicken the same until it was put on the grill, which conveniently enough is the time when this culinary adventure veered off into failure. Yes, the final product was moist and delicious, but it was a failure nonetheless. 

As I planned this day my goal was to push as much barbeque flavor as I could into each bird, and for me this included cooking each chicken over indirect heat and using an abundance of mesquite smoke. After five hours of smoke and slow and low cooking, each bird was indeed flavorful, moist and fall off the bone tender. However, lost in the brine, spice rub and wood smoke was the purpose of this experiment - the taste imparted by each individual liquid. 

 

My guest were gracious and insisted that as far as taste was concerned we had reached a tie between beer and ginger ale. That may have been the case, but I’d like to reserve judgement until I have a change to revisit this idea. Next time I’ll skip the massive dose of smoke and cook at a higher temperature to really test my idea. 

Here is to happy mistakes and crazy ideas. I can’t wait to try this experiment again, because failure or not, can chicken makes for a great summer time meal.

Know Thy Butcher

From time to time I mention that I prefer to shop for meat at traditional butcher shops instead of local chain supermarkets and warehouse clubs. Most recently I discussed this idea in a post about cooking great steaks at home. 

I've found that having first name relationship with a knowledgeable professional who is willing to discuss ideas and cooking processes with you leads to better results in the kitchen and your back yard barbecue. Finding a local resource for quality meat and customer service takes some work, but it does pay off with your finished product.

Since I posted that article on steaks, a few friends have asked me to explore this idea a bit further. I thought it would be a good idea to not only dig into what to buy at your local meat counter, but how to find one in the first place. 

Here is a brief checklist that you can use to get started in your search:

• Cleanliness - a good butcher shop will not be spotless, but will be clean, well lit and have thermometers positioned for your viewing within the case. Being a butcher is a professional job, and a good butcher and his place of business will look the part.
• Foot Traffic - not only will a crowded counter indicate you are in the right place, it will also ensure that the case is being changed over on a regular basis. 
• Engagement and Conversation - even in the busiest of meat counters, it is appropriate for the butcher to take an interest in your order. Conversation can lead to a discussion on process and cut, and you might find that your butcher has thoughts or experience that you do not.  
• Custom Service / Cuts - the butcher should willingly cut a fresh steak or remove the silver skin from a rack of ribs for you if you ask. 
• Locally Raised Products - the production of meat for consumption places stress on both the livestock and our environment. Whenever possible I search out local free range products including pork, chicken, beef and bison.  

Additionally, the following items are visual cues that I look for, even if they are for ascetics only. 

• Butcher Coats - while not required, they are appreciated.
• Primal Cut Charts and Posters. Do you know when a shoulder is a butt? Where is the chain from? Visual aids are always helpful.
• Butcher Paper - even better if secured with tape baring the shops name. 
• Ironic Tee Shirts - well crafted innuendo and declarative statements regarding meats dominance over vegetables are acceptable. 

Examples:

 
Legrand's Market and Catering

Manzo's Kitchen

Llywelyn's Pub

I have been struggling with the concept of “best” lately, especially what it means to achieve its largely objective status. 

As one who often represents his own opinions as facts, I am trying to develop a healthy understanding of what the term “best” actually means. When applied to food, best seems to be a dichotomy. Best is an appreciation for perfection. Best also represents the end of the search for that perfection. 

With this in mind I visited Llywelyn's Pub in St. Louis to try what has been deemed by many as one of the best burgers in town. Llywelyn's has several locations; Webster Groves, the Central West End and Soulard. Conversations with friends led me to the Soulard location, which is known for having the best service and friendliest waitstaff. Indeed our waitress was attentive and pleasant though out our meal.

The Llywelyn's Pub burger is a six-ounce chuck burger topped with caramelized onions, bacon and sharp cheddar cheese. The burger and toppings ride inside a thick English muffin which is browned on a griddle before serving.

The beef burger is quite good and cooked as requested, which for me is medium to medium rare. The patty was well caramelized, again appearing to result from a griddle and not an open flame, and added an additional layer of flavor to the interior juices and unadulterated beef taste. Kudos are deserved for the choice of an English muffin for this burger, its heft and dense structure absorbs the juice from the burger from start to finish without becoming soggy or weighted down.

Condiments are available table-side, but are quite unnecessary given the pub burgers choice of partners. The bacon is crisp without being burnt and while the onions were not caramelized in the true sense of the word, they had been sweat to the point where they were a sweet and savory addition. 

I continue my tradition of being outwardly hostile to idea of adding cheese to a burger, but my wife thought the healthy slice of sharp cheddar fit well with the concept behind the burger - telling me exactly that multiple times throughout our meal.

It is at this point that the idea behind the “best” begins to fail me yet again. Is the burger at Llywelyn's Pub the best in St. Louis? I think probably not. It is however one of the most well thought out burgers I’ve had in a while and appeals to my appreciation for culinary simplicity. To often burgers hide behind toppings to compensate for poor technique and lack of attention. This is not the case at Llywelyn's and for that reason I can say it is one of the better burgers I’ve had in town - if only to not allow the idea of “best” end my search.

Opinion: Recommended

1732 9th Street

St. Louis 63104

314-436-3255

World Vegetarian Day 2008

World Vegetarian Day is observed annually on October 1st. It is a day of celebration established by the North American Vegetarian Society in 1977, "To promote the joy, compassion and life-enhancing possibilities of vegetarianism."

While I fail any school of vegetarian thought in an epic way, I have many friends who have changed the way that I think about food and my relationship with it, while filling my stomach with meals that are not only healthy but good for the Earth as well.

Without shame I admit my site is very meat centric. However, day to day I do try to pay attention to the amount of meat I prepare in addition to focusing on where that animal protein is raised and how it is sourced.

Over the last year I've made a point to try the meat replacement products I can locate with the goal of working them into my daily diet. At every turn, it seemed my efforts were always met with limited success. I could not get over the fact that I would much rather have a sloppy joe made with hamburger instead of textured vegetable protein. I found that things like taste, and more importantly mouth-feel, kept me from using these products more often.

Upon reflection, my issue with these products was that I am looking for a vegetable protein to actually replace an animal protein. This is an unfair proposition by any standard. However, recently I have been experimenting with a product called Match from Match Foods that is changing my opinion.

According to Match Foods:

"Match premium meat alternatives are the natural choice for meat lovers because they are made with a relentless commitment and passion to Match the taste and texture of unprepared animal meat. Substitute Match premium meat alternatives seamlessly in your favorite recipes; whether you sauté, bake, or grill, you will enjoy high-protein, non-animal meat with no cholesterol, saturated fat, hormones, antibiotics or artificial colors. Match food products contain natural plant proteins and flavors."

My research indicates that Match Foods uses a new product - Prosanté XCL - from Cargill. Prosanté XCL, is a textured soy protein, with a structure that "closely mirrors whole-muscle meat". According to the nutritional information provided by Match Foods,  Prosanté XCL adds no saturated fat, cholesterol or trans fat to their product, while acting as an excellent source of protein and dietary fiber.

My experience so far is that the product lives up to its marketing. I've had it in "crab cakes", made with their crab replacement. I hosted a "chicken taco night" with friends with their chicken replacement product. I have used their beef and pork replacement products to make meatballs that I browned in olive oil, baked for 30 minutes, and then simmered in tomato sauce for hours.

Therefore, on this World Vegetarian Day, I would encourage you to try out one of the products that Match Foods has to offer, especially if you have the same hangups around meat replacements that I do. In the past I have felt that I need to adjust my cooking to use a replacement product, but with Match I don't feel the need.

Now go eat a vegetable. At a minimum it will make your Mom happy.