Thursday, January 31, 2013

Bump Bada BAH, Ba Ba Ba Ba Bump Bada BAH

I always look forward to this post; it's my annual celebration of the foods of the Super Bowl cities.

Here is my post from 2011 (here) and from (2012).  Those lyrics in case you couldn't tell are not actually lyrics but the sounds from one of those old goofy and histrionic NFL films documentaries.  God I used to love those!

But before I talk anymore about pro football I want to re-cap how I did on my bowl game analysis from this year.  I done pretty good!  :)

Orange Bowl:  Ryan's prediction FSU 34-17, actual FSU 31-10.  I don't like the 'Noles but I dated an FSU chick once and they do rule!

Rose Bowl:  Ryan's prediction Stanford 48-42, actual Stanford 20-14.  Got it right they just didn't score like I thought.  Too much ground game not enough going deep!

Sugar Bowl:  Ryan's prediction Florida 27-14, actual Louisville 33-23.  I think the Gators must have gotten off the bus in Pensacola because that sure was not an SEC team that showed up in NOLA.

Fiesta Bowl:  Ryan's prediction Oregon 42-38, actual Oregon 35-17.  Collin Klein scored as much as a virgin at mass; oh wait he is a virgin!

BCS Championship:  Ryan's prediction 'Bama 27-13, actual - who the *uck cares did you see the QB's girlfriend for Christ sakes (DAMN)!

And here are those Super City Recipes:

Baltimore

Maryland Crab Soup

Ingredients:

1 28 oz Can of Whole Tomatoes, diced
3 Cups of Water
2 Cups of Clam Juice
1 Cup of Lima Beans
1 Cup of Baby Carrots
1 Cup of Whole Kernel Corn
3 Tbs of Chopped Onions
1 Tbs Old Bay Seasoning
1 Pound of Crabmeat
Fresh Parsley, Scallions, Salt, and Pepper to taste

*   Combine tomatoes, water, clam juice, vegetables, and spices in a 4 quart saucepan.
*   Bring mixture to boil on medium heat.  Reduce to low and leave at simmer.
*   Add Crabmeat and let simmer for 10 minutes.
*   Add Parsley, Scallions, salt, and Pepper to taste or to garnish.

Mini Crab Cakes with Old Bay Remoulade

Ingredients:

1/2 Pound Phillips backfin crabmeat
1 Pound Phillips lump crabmeat
1/2 Cup Red Bell Pepper chopped
1/2 Cup Red Onion chopped
1 Tbs Olive Oil
1 Tsp Old Bay seasoning
1/4 Cup of Parsley
2  Eggs
3/4 Cup of Panko Breadcrumbs
1 tsp Italian Seasoning
3/4 tsp of Worcester Sauce
3/4 tsp Lemon Juice
1/2 Cup of Mayonaise
Dash of Crab Boil

Salt and Pepper to Taste

1/4 Cup Olive Oil (for saute)

*   Whip eggs and mix into Worcester, lemon juice, Old Bay, and Mayo.
*   In a separate bowl mix the crabmeat, veggies, parsley, olive oil, breadcrumbs, and italian seasoning.
*   Add wet ingredients to crabmeat mixture and combine thoroughly.  Add the dash of crab boil or Tabasco for some extra zing if desired.
*   Portion into 1.5/2 oz cakes.
*   Saute on medium heat in olive oil until crispy and brown on both sides.

Place on a toast point with a dolup of the Old Bay Remoulade and sing "you say you came to Baltimore from Ole Miss..... moonlight, feels right!"

The Remoulade:

1 Tbs Dijon Mustard
1 Cup Catsup
1 Tbs fresh squeezed lemon juice
2 Tbs grated Horseradish
1 Cup Mayonaise
1 tsp Old Bay Seasoning
A few capers if you wish
Dash of Hot Pepper Sauce

*   Remoulade - mix Dijon Mustard, Catsup, Horseradish, Mayonaise, and Old Bay together in bowl until thoroughly combined.  Refrigerate until ready to serve.

If you don't want to go to all that trouble just stop by a Phillips Seafood and pick up some crab cakes or look for some at your local Wegmans!  Btw, if you are ever driving through Fredrick, MD down I-70 or down the 270 spur to DC get off at the Buckeystown Pike and stop by May's Restaurant.  It's a Ryan fav and they bring out the crab by the tray-full!


San Francisco:

I got to tell you this kind of stumped me a bit.  I thought SF would be easy just like Chicago, New York, Pittsburg, or maybe Philadelphia.  But when I got to thinking about it, San Francisco really doesn't have a distinctive single food like Chowder, Chicago Hot Dogs, New York style pizza, or a Philly Cheese Steaks.  I've been to SF on two occasions and the food is awesome.  Sure they have Sour Dough bread, it was popular with 49'ers during the Gold Rush because the traditional leavening ingredients of yeast and baking soda were not as reliable under the conditions the minors encountered.  The 49'ers mascot is even named for Sourdough.  San Francisco is home to Ghirardelli which makes great chocolate and everybody love chocolate, right.  And of course there is always Rice-a-Roni (that SF treat) which really does have it's origins in SF from an Italian immigrant who settled into the Mission district and sold pasta.  His wife developed a recipe of rice pilaf mixed with macaroni, hence rice and roni.  The rest is history.

But what I really think of when I think of San Francisco cuisine is that fact that SF is perhaps even more eclectic than NYC.  In SF you have a strong Italian influence in "Little Italy."  You have the strong Pan-Asian influence that is much more than just Chinatown.  You also have the Hispanic influence and even that Sonoma cowboy flavor.  You have the remnants of the old 60's California car culture of American Graffiti reflected in Mel's Diner.  And of course there are all those hippies in Berkeley that just eat brown rice and tofu!

So I guess my tribute to San Francisco is fusion which I do love.  I love learning how a certain food came to be based on varying influences.  As such I'll leave you with this - Chop Suey.

Yes Chop Suey, that most Chinese of dishes (we think), is in fact not Chinese.  At least it didn't come from China, it came from immigrant Chinese laborers who settled in San Francisco and needed an inexpensive taste of home or something cheap to serve to those minors along with their Sourdough bread.

Chop Suey

Ingredients:

2 Pounds of boneless skinless chicken breast meat diced (sub in beef, pork, shrimp, scallops, or just go veggie if you prefer)
1/2 Red Bell Pepper Diced
1/2 Yellow Bell Pepper Diced
1/2 Green Bell Pepper Diced
1/2 Red Onion Diced
1 Head of Fresh Broccoli
2 Tbs Soy Sauce
2 Tbs Fish Sauce
1 tsp salt
1 tsp black pepper
1 Tbs minced garlic
1/2 tsp Cayenne pepper
1/2 Cup Pineapple Juice (optional)
If you have stuff like baby carrots, bamboo shoots, cabbage, snow peas, etc. chop them up and throw 'em in also!
1 Pound of Lo Mein Noodles

*   Blanch broccoli until slightly tender
*   Sautee chicken breast on medium heat until brown in about 2 Tbs of vegetable oil.  When about half done add salt, pepper, garlic, and juice.
*   When chicken is done add vegetables and sauté until tender.  As the mixture is almost done add in soy and fish sauce, cover, and let simmer for about 5 minutes.
*   Serve over Lo Mein noodles with an egg roll and Fortune cookie!  And remember as that famous Fortune cookie once said "never give up unless defeat arouses that girl from accounting!"


And here is a collection of those goofy NFL songs.

My prediction:  Baltimore defense slows down the 49'er running game and makes Kaepernick beat them deep.  He doesn't do it and the Ravens win 24-20.  Also, Ray Lewis plays hard and goes out a champ; Randy Moss afterwords exclaims that he is the greatest football player to never win a Super Bowl.  Sorry Kat!  :(

2 comments:

Unknown said...

Now I'm hungry. Pittsburgh has an 'h' btw. This Super Bowl is tough enough for us Steeler fans, misspelling our city is just rubbing it in!! j/k :)

rachel-xx said...

Are you the cook in your family? Guys never really dated me for my cooking (or lack of) skills. I dated a boy from SF for a short while. He really hurt my feelings and I am the kind of girl that carries a grudge. I'm pulling for the Ravens.