The Phenomena of Staycations

The economic hard times have had a huge impact on summer vacation travels, and since 2001 there has been a dramatic rise in vacationers either treating their own homes as a resort or taking short, local trips to lodging and resources their own cities and states have to offer. Wikipedia cites these important benefits to staycations:

1) Staycations are far less costly than a vacation involving traveling. There are no lodging costs and travel expenses are minimal. Costs may include transportation for local trips, dining, and local attractions. "The American Automobile Association said the average North American vacation will cost $244 per day for two people for lodging and meals... Add some kids and airfare, and a 10-day vacation could top $10,000".

2) Staycations do not have the stress associated with travel, such as packing, long drives, or waits at airports.

3) Indeed, a few people go as far as only leaving their home for their usual errands (such as food shopping). Those with backyard swimming pools have an advantage as they can spend more time swimming without leaving their property and sometimes have as much fun as they might have had going anywhere.

4) Staycations may be of economic benefit to some local businesses, who get customers from the area providing them with business. In 2008, the tourism bureaus of many U.S. cities also began promoting staycations for their residents to help replace the tourism dollars lost from a drop in out-of-town visitors.

The benefits are even greater if you live in a state that has great tourist features such as luxury resorts, nature sight-seeing attractions or amusement parks. In hot states such as Arizona many resorts offer wonderful summer rates because their occupancy rates tend to be low; it has been an alternative to simply closing up for the summer, as some still do here.

We have taken many weekend staycations over the last ten years in both Tucson and Phoenix; Hermosa Inn, Westward Look, The Phoenician, Miraval and Tubac, Marriott Dove Mountain and Starr Pass have all have been destinations for my family.

The rates are usually great, the accommodations and dining have been awesome, and it feels good to support attractions in our own back yard. Plus we can drive to all of these resorts with a 120 miles radius of our house. That mean drive time of two hours or less. The new Marriott Dove Mountain is a fabulous resort seven miles from our front doorstep. Why not patronize them.

The Wigwam Golf Resort has had a celebrated history in the West Valley area of Phoenix (Litchfield Park) since the 1950's. And recent refurbishments to the restaurants and rooms have been fantastic. I am not a golfer, but I do appreciate the four courses on this property, the first to be designed by Robert Trent Jones in Arizona. The Golf Course there is championship quality. All are beautiful!

This was not our first stay at the Wigwam. The last time we were there was a few years back. The smooth jazz saxophonist Kim Waters performed a concert there and we won a radio call in contest for a weekend stay. That was fabulous.

Our sojourn this weekend included a package of massages, manicures, pedicures and fine dining. Yes we pampered ourselves, but why not? With rewards points that Linda used from her work and the summer packages that were offered we were able to enjoy this resort all all of its amenities for about $200 a day. And at 109 miles from home, the travel was a snap!

That Perfect French Fry!

One of my food weaknesses in life are French fries! I work out, I watch what I eat now and I am trying to keep my weight and cholesterol down. It’s a struggle but it is also something most of us wrestle with, especially as we grow older.

So when I indulge in fries I try not to get the fast food kind, but go the frozen route, and bake them in the oven. But that’s no bargain either because the fries are laden with fat, salt and chemicals before they are frozen, so there is the dilemma.

This weekend I was watching America’s Test Kitchen and the subject of making good fries at home was on the program. If you want a detailed explanation of how they came up with the procedure I am about to describe you can go to their website for the information. What I am going to do is simply discuss my experience with making them the way they prescribe.

The suggestion is to start with cold peanut oil and Yukon Gold potatoes, sliced evenly into ¼ -inch sticks. Don’t bother peeling because this type of potato has a very thin skin. America’s Test Kitchen insists that the procedure does not work as well with other potato varieties. You are after a crunchy golden brown outside and a creamy interior.

Place the potatoes in a large frying pan and cover with cold peanut oil. Wait! Won’t the potatoes soak up all that oil? According to the testers, no they won’t. The amount of oil that is soaked into the potatoes is proportionate to the temperature. The higher the heat, the more water is driven out and replaced by the oil!

So bring the potatoes and oil to a rolling boil. When the oil first starts to vigorously boil, start a timer! Fifteen minutes maximum. And don’t stir them around, except to gently separate any that are stuck either to the side of the pan or together. You don’t want to break up the potatoes.

At fifteen minutes or when the potatoes have that golden brown color, remove them from the oil with a slotted spoon or spatula and place on paper towels to drain. Salt at this time to taste, and you are ready to dine!

I tried this method today and it worked great! I only used one medium potato so I didn’t quite need the entire 15 minutes they called for (I could visually see the browning that I wanted in the pan). The fries were crunchy, creamy and not at all greasy or soggy. The cool thing about it is that I wasn’t ingesting seven or eight chemicals that I can neither, pronounce, spell nor wish to eat, and I was able to control the salt content.

So what about deep fryers? We've never owned one because we don't fry foods all that often. The show tested six fryers during their research into making the perfect French fry and found that none of them gave very good results. Fries invariably turned out soggy and oily.

If you are on a strict diet, fries are problematic. But we are talking about occasional indulgences here and not a dietary staple. Try it for yourself and see!

Smoking a Brisket on a Gas Grill

The summer's almost over for me but there are still a few days left to get out in my back yard and do some grilling and smoking. I love a good Texas brisket that has been well-smoked; it is lean, tender and quite juicey.

It is also a tough piece of meat if not properly prepared and let's face it; many of us have gas grills only. Also, if you live in an apartment complex there may be rules prohibiting the burning of charcoal grills. But you can get great smoke results on a gas grill if you take the right steps in your preparation.

I'm using several sources, including old rub recipes we have accumulated, and material from Steven Raichlen's book, How to Grill. It's an excellent manual for grillers, with lots of pictures, and simple instructions. It's also quite massive at nearly 500 pages. Here we go!

Dry Rub

3 tbsp chili powder
1 tbsp coarse salt
2 tbsp black pepper
11/2 tsp brown sugar
11/2 tsp onion powder
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp cayenne pepper

Optional Marinade

½ cup red wine
2 tbsp red wine vinegar
2 tbsp vegetable oil
2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
1 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp chopped garlic
2 tbsp spicy mustard
2 tsp salt
1 tsp black pepper

Mop Sauce

1 cup white vinegar
1 cup beer
1 cup bourbon
1/2 cup molasses
1 tbsp garlic salt
1 tbsp brown sugar
1 tsp red pepper flakes
1 tsp black pepper

Meat Preparation

Apply dry-rub seasoning to the meat the night before cooking and allow it to sit, draped in plastic wrap, in the refrigerator overnight. This allows the seasonings to absorb into the meat and cure it. If you are using the marinade instead, use a turkey roaster bag and pour the marinade over the meat in the bag, sealing and refrigerating overnight.

With an especially large brisket I have actually applied dry rub and used the wet marinade together to make sure the meat has a chance to thoroughly tenderize before the smoking process begins and guaranteeing a succulent brisket!

Grill Preparation

Fill a large bowl or gallon bucket with wood chips of your choice (I like applewood or hickory) and cover with water, allowing the chips to soak for at least an hour prior to cooking time.

Ignite the gas burner on one side of the grill, leaving all other burners off. Turn the dial of the lit burner to the highest heat setting.

Place a handful or two of the saturated wood chips inside a smoker box or in the center of a large aluminum foil sheet. If using foil, fold it over the wood chips several times to fashion a foil pouch and create a dozen or so vent holes in the pouch with a fork.

Place the smoker box or foil pouch on the lit burner side over direct heat, close the grill lid and allow the wood smoke.

The Smoking Process

When the wood is smoking place the cured meat on the cooking grate above the unlit side of the grill and close the lid.

Turn down the burner dial so that the cooking temperature drops to between 200 and 250 degrees F.

Check the hardwood smoker box or foil pouch every hour to ensure smoke continues to flow. If smoking ceases, add more wet chips to the smoker box or add a new foil wood-chip pouch. While you are adding more wood chips you will want to baste the meat with the mop while you have the lid up. For added moisture I place a foil tray of water, some of the spices I used in the rub and a cup of beer or wine on the rack above the meat. That is replenished with water every time the lid is up for basting and checks on the wood.

Smoke most large briskets 4-5 hours or until the meat has an internal temperature of 190 degrees for medium well done.

Shrimp Pasta with Feta Cheese

Okay I am going to riff on this recipe because, hey it's sort of my nature! Seriously this very easy dish is a take-off of many other types of shrimp and pasta dishes. Here's what I use:

1 lb of shelled, deveined shrimp.
1 lb angel hair pasta, cooked
2 tomatoes, quartered
5 cloves garlic, minced
2 sprigs fresh basil or 1 tsp dried basil
1 tsp dried oregano
1/4 cup dry white wine
2 tbsps olive oil, seperated
1 6 oz packages crumbled feta cheese
salt and pepper to taste
Red pepper flakes (optional for heat)

Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil and add pasta, cooking for 8-10 minutes until al dente and then drain.

While pasta is cooking heat 1 tablespoon of the olive oil and cook over medium heat the shrimp with the garlic and the white wine until shrimp is pink. Remove with a slotted spoon and set the shrimp aside.

Add the remaining oil to the pan and cook the tomatoes, basil and oregano with the white wine mixture until tender, about 10 minutes. At the end add the cooked shrimp and season with salt and black pepper to taste. If you want heat add the red pepper flakes too.

Pour this mixture over the cooked pasta, add the feta cheese and lightly toss. Serve with a green salad, crusty Italian bread and a white wine.

Stuffed Italian Sausage Focaccia

I've posted a previous Italian bread recipe on this page which I use all the time. I saw this online today and tried to link to Facebook but something was lost in the translation. So here is the recipe as it appears on the site below. I'm going to try this one very soon!


Source: http://www.food52.com/recipes/5579_sausage_herb_and_cheese_stuffed_focaccia_bread

Makes 1 focaccia bread

Dough:

3 1/2 cups All purpose flour (can also be whole wheat)
2 teaspoons instant yeast
1 1/2 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons Olive Oil
1 1/4 cup water

Filling and Topping:

1 cup Feta Cheese
1 cup Mozzarella Cheese
1/2 cup Fresh Basil Leaves
1/4 teaspoon Sea Salt
1-2 teaspoon Fresh Rosemary
1 tablespoon Olive Oil
1/2 pound Sausage, cooked and crumbled

Mix together all of the dough ingredients in a medium-sized bowl, then knead --using your hands, a mixer, a food processor or a bread machine -- to form a smooth dough.

Place the dough in a greased bowl, cover, and allow it to rise for 1 1/2 hours, or until it's doubled in bulk.

Transfer the dough to a lightly floured or lightly greased work surface, knead it gently, then divide it in half. Round each half into a loose ball, and allow the balls to rest, covered, for 10 to 15 minutes. This allows the gluten in the dough to relax, making the focaccia easier to shape.

Roll one ball into a 10- to 12-inch circle. Place it on a lightly oiled baking sheet or pizza pan (or onto a peel dusted with cornmeal if you'll be baking the focaccia on an oven stone). Top the shaped round with the filling ingredients, spreading them evenly over the surface, and leaving about 1 inch crust bare around the edges. Roll the second half of dough into an equal-sized circle, then place it atop the filling. Press the edges of the dough together firmly to seal the two circles.

Cover the focaccia with a damp cloth, lightly greased plastic wrap or a proof cover. Preheat your oven to 425°F. Allow the focaccia to rise for 45 minutes, or until it's noticeably puffy. Just before placing it in the oven, dimple it (poke gentle indentations into it) with your fingers, brush it with 1 tablespoon olive oil, and sprinkle it with coarse salt and rosemary. Bake the focaccia for 30 to 35 minutes at 350.

Another Cooked Chicken Recipe

So....I had this smoked chicken from the BBQ demonstration I went to on Saturday and I thought on what to do with it today. Finally I came up with this idea:

Total Time: about 40 minutes
Ingredients:

1 cup long-grain rice, uncooked
1 cup sliced celery
1 (10oz) package frozen mixed, about 1 1/2 cups
2 cups water
2 teaspoons salt
2 tablespoons butter
1 to 1 1/2 cups cooked diced chicken
2 tablespoons flour
1/8 teaspoon pepper
2/3 cup milk (2% is fine)
1 cup shredded mild Cheddar or American cheese
1 tablespoon chopped green onion for garniah


Preparation:
In a medium saucepan, combine rice, celery, water and 1 teaspoon salt. Heat to boiling. Cover and simmer for about 8 minutes; add peas and cook an additional 8 to 10 minutes, or until rice is tender and water is absorbed.

Melt butter in a medium saucepan or skillet. stir in flour, pepper, and remaining 1 teaspoon salt. Continue to cook, stirring constantly, just until bubbling. Add cooked chicken. Stir in milk and 1 1/3 cups water. Continue cooking and stirring until sauce thickens and gently boils for about 1 minute. Pour sauce over the chicken rice mixture; transfer to shallow buttered 2-quart baking dish. Sprinkle with cheese; bake chicken rice recipe at 375° for 20 minutes. Garnish with green onion and serve with a white wine.

This dish is awesome and very easy to prepare, with minimal prep or stress.

Chicken rice bake serves 4.

White Sangria

Okay, so you are not fond of red wine but can do white wine. I got it! There is a variation of the Sangria recipe that I posted yesterday that is just as awesome. Try this:

INGREDIENTS

2 bottles semi-dry white wine
1 cup vodka
1/4 c white sugar
2 rip plums, cut into 1/4" wedges
1 Gala apple, cored and cut into 1/4" wedges
1 orange, sliced into 1/4" wedges
11/2 cup raspberries (frozen is fine)

Wash and slice the fruit. In a pitcher pour in the wine, vodka and sugar, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Add the fruit and stir again. Cover the pitcher and chill for one to two hours before serving.

Pour the Sangria over ice in a glass and enjoy! Bw3 sure to have plenty of the fruit in your glass.

Awesome Tomato Relish Meatloaf

How many times have you made meatloaf that was so promising when you started but ended up greasy, crumbly or dry? We suffered that fate so many times that we had just about give up on it, until we saw this recipe on a TV show somewhere and copied it down. The key to less greasy meatloaf is combining lean ground beef with lean ground pork. That will provide great flavor without the fat.

Ingredients

Tomato relish:

2 tablespoons olive oil
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 bay leaves
1 onion, diced
2 red bell peppers, seeded and chopped
2 tomatoes, seeded and chopped
1/4 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
12 ounces bottled ketchup
1 1/2 pounds lean (90% or higher) ground beef
1 pound lean ground pork
3 eggs
2 tablespoons fresh thyme leaves
Salt and pepper, to taste

Directions

For the tomato relish, coat a skillet with olive oil and place over medium heat. Saute the garlic, bay leaves, and onion together until they caramelize. Add the red peppers and cook until soft. Add the tomatoes, parsley and Worcestershire sauce, cook for 10 minutes until the vegetables cook down. Stir in the ketchup and continue to cook until heated through, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat.

In a large mixing bowl, combine the ground beef and pork together with your hands. Fold in 1/2 cup of the tomato relish. Add the eggs and thyme and mix with both hands just until blended. Do not over mix or the meat loaf will become dense and tough. Season with salt and pepper. Coat a 9 by 5-inch loaf pan with nonstick spray. Fill the loaf pan with the meat mixture, mounding it a bit on top. Generously spoon some tomato relish on the surface. When cooked, this will form a top crust. Place the loaf pan on a cookie sheet and bake in a preheated 350 degree F oven for 1 to 1 1/2 hours or until the meat loaf has pulled away from the sides of the pan. Remove from pan, allow to cool slightly before cutting into slices. Serve with remaining sauce on the side.

Wowza Sangria!

On warm summer weekend evenings I enjoy occasionally sipping on a good Sangria. There are some bottled products that you can buy, but those never really caught my fancy. A friend shared a great recipe with us several years ago that I am recreating here. It's easy to make and delicious!

4 cups semi-dry red wine, about one 750ml bottle
1/2 cup orange juice
1/4 cup sugar (more if you like sweeter Sangria)
1/4 cup brandy
1/2 orange, cut into thin rounds
1/2 lemon, cut into thin rounds
1 apple, cored and cut into 1/2-inch chunks
1 pear, cored and cut into 1/2-inch chunks

In a large pot or bowl combine the wine, orange juice, brandy and sugar. Stir until the sugar dissolves.

Cover and chill 3 to 24 hours.

Pour chilled Sangria in a glass pitcher and add the fruit. Serve in tall glasses over ice.

This will make 8-10 servings.

Barbecue Demonstration at Acacia, Tucson AZ

Tucson has always celebrated its Sonoran Mexico cuisine connection with it’s great Mexican restaurants. They are often family-owned and may be found all over Southern Arizona. But the town also is a center for sophisticated dining as well; there are many upscale restaurants featuring the work of several renowned chefs, including Janos Wilder.

One of our favorites is Acacia in the Tucson Foothills; it’s in a new location after being in the St. Phillips Plaza a few miles south for many years. Acacia has always been elegant and sophisticated, yet it’s menu is uncomplicated. Chef Albert Hall is a master of his craft, no question.

My wife has used this restaurant in the evenings many times to host her pharma programs educating her doctors on the drug she markets for her job. Consequently she is well known to the chef and his staff.

The chef hosts a cooking demonstration once a month in the summer (the slow season here) on various themes. For a prix fixe of $55, attendees can assist the chef, ask questions, take notes, and enjoy all they can eat and drink of the food prepared and the bar. Today’s topic was barbecue.

The menu had smoked, barbecue pork, brisket and chicken, along with printed information on making all of the variety of rubs and sauces the chef employed. He showed us how the restaurant smokes its meats (custom made smoker and fire box chained to a steel rail out back), and presented each of us with a packet of recipes. Also on the menu were smoked, baked beans, a delightful corn on the cob and coleslaw. One of the attendees shared her own recipe for the slaw and we were served that by the staff.

The discussion was lively over which region of the country made the best ‘cue, and sauces. Texas was well represented by the chef’s special guest this month, Lupita Murillo, a long-time local TV reporter but a native of McAllen Texas. She brought with her mango margarita recipe, which prepared for all of us. It was tasty.

Sauces and rubs were from Texas, Memphis and North Carolina. They all needed a little tweaking in my book with some combination of pepper, salt or sweetness, but the chef invited all of us to use them as a base and personalize them as we saw fit. The meal concluded with grilled peaches served over ice cream. Not a good day for dieters, but the food was well prepared and delicious.

Next month the topic is sushi. Hmmm, I’d better get my reservations in now!

Roast Chicken Breast Italian

I had a breast of roasted supermarket chicken that was leftover in the fridge the other day and some Italian bread on the counter that nobody was eating. I really detest wasting food, so I did some thinking and came up with this dish. The beauty of it is that it uses things that are on hand (or at least should be!).


1-2 cups cooked, chopped roasted chicken
4-5 cups Italian bread, cubed
¼ cup olive oil, plus 1 tbsp olive oil divided
1/3 cup creamy Italian dressing
1 14 oz can diced tomatoes, with juice
½ cup chicken stock, low sodium
1 cup chopped, diced onion
2 cloves garlic, diced
1 cup chopped, diced red bell pepper
1 cup cubed mozzarella or provolone cheese (slices if you don’t have cheese blocks)
½ cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp onion powder
Dash salt and fresh cracked black pepper

Add the dry spices to a large bowl and pour in the ¼ cup of olive oil. Mix thoroughly and add the bread cubes, tossing gently to coat. Spread the crumbs out on a large baking sheet and bake in a pre-heated 350 degree oven for about 10 minutes, or until the bread is crispy and lightly browned. Removed and let cool.

In a large sauté pan heat a tbsp of oil over medium heat and add the onions and bell pepper. When the onions are soft add the garlic and cook for another minute. Now add the chopped chicken, tomatoes and stock. You may want to re-season with salt and pepper at this point. Reduce the liquid slightly but don’t evaporate, about 10 minutes.

While the chicken and vegetables are heating spread the bread cubes in a large 13” X 9” baking dish and top evenly with the cheese cubes. Pour the chicken and tomatoes over this and drizzle with the salad dressing. Sprinkle the Parmesan cheese over the dish and bake in the 350 degree oven for 30-40 minutes, or until the cheese is bubbly. Remove and serve immediately.

** Note if you are on a low fat diet you can substitute a little chicken stock for the olive oil to coat the bread cubes but take care not to make the bread soggy. You can also buy seasoned bread cubes to cut out baking the bread altogether. Lots of ways to go with this one!

Athletes and the Perils of Fame and Fortune

I saw a discussion on Fox Sports with Dan Patrick this morning about the mistakes athletes make with their money and new found visibility, as in Twitter and Facebook. The problem is that there is that if athletes remain in school, they are still not prepared for the sudden wealth and celebrity which can hit them almost overnight; no information on money management, choosing advisers or agents, or handling the notoriety. And certainly nothing how to handle themselves on the social networks.

Sure, you and I could probably go on Twitter and say stupid things and post tasteless pictures; nobody would know or care. The only penalty would perhaps be getting unfollowed. But that's no deterrent because we would probably gain other followers attracted to that type of behavior.

But athletes' every word uttered, especially on Twitter, are magnified out of proportion by the phenomena of the 24-hour news cycle. Ask Labron James about this! The NFLPA recently hosted a seminar on these issues and more for their incoming rookie class to think as they prepare for their first season (whenever that will be - there is still a lockout in place at this writing).

Among the speakers was former NFL coach and NFL analyst Herm Edwards, who has never been at a loss for words. You know him from the famous quote "You win to play the game!" I added a segment of the speech above; funny, but on point. And the message can be applied everyone, not just athletes!

I don't know what the answer is, but I do know that many teams are now hiring social media managers to teach players about the dangers of saying the wrong thing on Twitter or Facebook and handling the bad publicity when they do. Just 20 years ago who woulda thunk it!