Review: Grove Bamboo Case for iPhone 5

One of the great things about iPhone and iPad accessories is the ecosystem that has evolved since the advent of the iPod for all things Apple.  The range of design ideas and materials is endless, but one of my favorites is made by a company here in Portland, Oregon called Grove.  Their case for the iPhone 5 uses a new method not previously used in their products to increase strength.  They have laminated a plant-fiber compound inside the renewable bamboo outer shell that adds strength while remaining environmentaly friendly.  In an age of disposable plastic and silicon cases and covers, this 100% post-consumer material shows that you can add personality and flair to your electronics without causing more stress on our landfills.  In addition to loads of designs that are available from artists world wide on these cases, Grove also offers the unique ability to customize the case by laser etching your own designs as well.  They sent me the plain case above, but I have another case for my iPad 3 with my family's coat-of-arms etched into the leather cover that shows the great craftmanship these folks are capable of.  While their cases are continualy on back-order, they are well worth the wait.  Everyone who has seen this case is blown away, and I have had dozens of people ask where it came from in the week since it arrived.  Grove can be found online at www.grovemade.com.

FatBoy Creations: Fatboy 3-Meat Stew

I decided that the weather and turned cold enough to start working on a signature soup this week, and ended up creating an awesome stew.  I wanted something rich and meaty yet fairly healthy, and this is what I came up with.

A big pot of goodness right hereFeaturing ground buffalo, ground beef, and kielbasa sausage this was an instant hit at my house.  To save time I went the easy way and used mostly canned vegetables, but you can use fresh if you want to take the extra time.  The stew came out as smooth and flavorful as I ever could have hoped, and this afternoon it passed the important "day after" test.

Here's the recipe, I hope you enjoy!

Fatboy 3-Meat Stew

Ingredients:

1lb Ground Buffalo

1lb Ground Beef

2lbs Kielbasa Sausage - sliced into coins

2 cans (10oz) Diced tomatoes with green chiles

2 cans (15oz) pinto beans - drained and rinsed

2 cans (15oz) stewed tomatoes

1 bag (16oz) Frozen Corn

1 bag (16oz) Frozen mixed vegetables

1 large white onion - finely diced

4 large baker potatoes - peeled and cubed

Seasoning Salt

Pepper (to taste)

1 tsp Cumin

2 tsp Chili Powder

Directions:

1. Place ground meat, onions, and sausage in 3" deep skillet.  Season with seasoning salt.  Cook until ground meat is no longer pink.  Drain fat and place mixture in stock pot.

2. Add remaining ingredients to your stock pot and bring to a boil.  Once boiling, reduce heat to medium-low and cover.  Cook for at least 1 hour, tasting for proper seasoning and stirring every 15 minutes. Wait until potatoes are starting to break down before serving.

Happiness can come in a bowl

 

Food cart Review: Retrolicious

The Retrolicious Cart

I love good food, and love comfort food even more.  So when the guys told me that there was a new cart in the parking lot of my my old employer at Triangle Pointe in Tigard, I decided to visit them for lunch and see it for myself.

Featuring "Scratch Made Classics", Retrolicious is comfort food done right.  Their signature sandwhich seems to be a creation they call "The Jethro".  Roasted pork, bacon, BBQ sauce, coleslaw, and cheese on a toasted roll is an amazing sandwich.  Served with potato chips for $7, it is also a great value for the time put into the preperation that goes into this thing.  The pork is slow roasted, the bacon crispy, and the slaw a perfect contrast.  If there weren't so many other great items on the menu I would eat this happily every week.  Fortunately for all of us, there are plenty of other great items on the menu.

"The Jethro" is worth tracking this cart downFrom meatloaf sandwichs and dinners to fried chicken with mashed potatoes, pimento mac and cheese to homemade soups the hits keep on coming from this wonderful cart.  I'm just hoping to catch the chicken and waffles next time....I hear it's the best in town.

the Meatloaf Dinner

Fried Chicken Dinner

My lunch: The Jethro with a side of Pimento Mac and Cheese

Retrolicious can be found around town throughout the week.  Check out this piece of FatBoy Heaven....you won't be sorry.

Holiday Recipes to try (or try and avoid)

OK, here's an idea that looks good, but I'm not sure how it will come out.  I may just have to give this one a try this holiday season.  Who knew that Spam came in Turkey flavor??  Stay tuned for reactions!

SPAM:

SPAMSGIVING™ Day Delight

"There are times when you just have to look around and be thankful for what you have. And if you look around and see SPAM® Oven Roasted Turkey in your cupboard, you’ll really be thankful—and so will your family when they try this tasty twist on tradition. "

Review: First round of iPad mini cases/covers has arrived

OK, so far I have received several cases/covers for the iPad mini, and a couple show why third-party case manufacturers need to be careful not to rush products to market too early.

Apple SmartCover for iPad miniThe first to arrive actuall got to me before the mini did.  Apple's SmartCover for iPad mini is much like the SmartCover for the original iPad.  Attached by magnets along the left hand side of the iPad, it lays across the face of the iPad protecting the screen.  Lined with micro-fiber cloth, it also can be removed and folded to be used as a screen cleaner.  It protects the glass but leaves the sides and back uncovered, and provides no real protection in case of a fall.  It is better than nothing, and holds in place fairly well over the screen to protect the glass while it is in a bag or pocket, but provides little protection.

Ionic 2-Tone leather caseThe next case to come in was the Ionic 2-Tone Designer Leather Case Cover.  This case looks great, and is well constructed.  The stiching is well done, and special attention to design was used to provide a magnetic flap to secure the iPad instead of the typical velcro or friction flaps used in most other cases.  The problem is that Ionic rushed this case out without having design specs from Apple for screen size and more importantly, the size of the bezel around the screen.  Apple changed the way it did bezels with the mini, and rather than being equal widths on all four sides, the long sides of the bezel are narrower.  This brings us to the problem with Ionic's case.  More than 1/4 inch of screen is obstructed on each of the long sides.  As you can see, the case covers a significant portion of the screen along both edgesThis was done because prior to the announcement of the iPad mini, no one could have expected that for the first time the bezel would be narrowed along those edges.  Ionic's designers couldn't take that into account, and so they are shipping a case that is not at all funtional for this device.

The last case to arrive is the iTronz Black High Quality PU Leather Smart iPad Mini case folio.  My favorite of the three I've recieved so far, but again it was obviously rushed into production.  Unlike the ionic above it was designed after the announcement, as evidenced by the proper placement of the side cut around the screen.  The design is pretty common, it fits the device well and provides fair ammounts of protection.  The issue comes from the placement of magnets in the front flap.  They are intended to activate a magnetic switch in the ipad to enable the unlocking of the device.  The magnets are not aligned properly for the switch, so you still have to manually turn the ipad on.  Not a big deal, but not as convinient as it was intended to be.

The bottom line is this folks.  By christmas there will be a lot of cases from well known manufacturers that work exactly the way you expect them to.  While the proces may be cheaper on these no-name imports, sometimes you get what you paid for.

Review: Apple iPad mini

When Apple finally announced the iPad mini two weeks ago, the only question most people in the tech industry had was where they would set the price. The device had been rumored for years, and was expected long ago. We received our answer, and many thought it was far too high. At $329 it is $130 more than the Amazon Kindle Fire HD, and more than $70 more than Google's Nexus 7.

What the analysts failed to anticipate was the impact that Apple has on the public. Just as they did with MP3 players when the iPod was released, Apple has not just released another device in a crowded market, they have released THE iconic device in a market that many didn't know really existed.

Many people in my family would never have heard of the Kindle Fire without my telling them (and showing them mine). I'm sure many of you could say the same. However when Apple announces a product people hear about it, and more importantly for Apple, they run down to buy it. They stay up past midnight for preorders to make sure they have it before the people they work with. Apple announced that they sold more than 3 million new iPads over the first weekend, more than twice what the analysts expected. Here's how they did it.

Apple knows tablets. With more than 80% of the market in the US they know tablets better than anyone. Apple didn't need to change anything but size. They didn't need to design a new interface or operating system the way the other companies I've mentioned needed to. They didn't need to wait for developer support, because they used the same specifications developers were already writing for from the iPad 2. If you have used an iPad or iPhone before, you already know how to use an iPad mini. Since there are more than 200 million iOS devices already sold, that is a huge group of potential users to draw from, and a group with more brand loyalty than any other in the consumer electronics market.

As Phil Schiller said during the announcement, this is "every inch an iPad". From the familiar grid of icons to the 4:3 aspect ratio in a world of widescreen tablets, the iPad stands out, and in the minds of many above the rest of the market.

It has replaced both my Kindle Paperwhite and my iPad 3 in my daily life, and I expect I'm not alone.

Review: Microsoft Surface with Windows RT - Drew's Take

The home screen of Windows RT on the new Surface from MicrosoftMicrosoft for the first time has released their own computer, and it could be a game changer.  Fed up with hardware partners failing to capture their vision of tablet computing they have this week released Surface, a bold new take on the world of mobile computing.  Featuring a power efficient Tegra 3 processor from NVIDIA and finally removing backward compatibility from windows they have been able to strip their vaunted operating system down to its bare essentials.  A complete re-imagining of Windows has been needed for a long time, and I think Microsoft has hit on a winning formula here.  What remains to be seen is how quickly software developers start writing programs that will run natively in Microsoft’s new “MODERN UI”.  Without developer support this grand experiment is destined to fail.

 

Hardware

With a new hardware and software platform, it is impossible to really compare specs for hardware.  The surface has some interesting design cues, and Microsoft’s design team has made some risky design choices that I think they have really pulled off here. 

The touch keyboard doesn’t seem like it would work.  3MM thick, no moving parts…it would seem to most to be a token gesture towards a physical keyboard.  However, after a few days using it I am writing this review using it and am more than happy with its responsiveness.  Unlike many of the netbook keyboards we have seen over the last few years, the touch keyboard cover that is available with Surface has a surprisingly roomy keyboard, with nice separation between keys and a decent feel.  It takes some getting used to, but once you do it is like a whole new world.

One thing that became clear when watching the official release keynote for Surface was how much thought went into the smallest features of this hardware.  From the sound made when the kickstand is deployed or stowed to the angle of the cameras being set to account for the slope of the Surface when using the kickstand, no aspect of this hardware design was not thought of and planned for a specific reason.

Surface with Windows RT features 2GB of RAM, a 1.5GHz Tegra 3 processor, and either 32GB or 64GBs of flash storage.  There is no benchmark software available in the Windows Store yet, and no other devices to compare it to anyway, so in depth numbers cannot be a part of this review.  What I can say is that while some software takes a bit to respond, it does not seem to be a resource issue.  With more than ten applications running programs had the same response issues as they did when running alone.  Surface is a very responsive system, and on I could see replacing an Ultra Book or Net Book in just about anyone’s workflow.

Software

Windows RT is a new and vastly different operating system than Windows 7, and that is easy to see when the Surface first comes on.  The live tiles are not just the first thing you see, they replace the start menu so crucial to previous versions of Windows.  Make no mistake though, this is Windows, right down to the command prompt.  The biggest difference is “legacy” software.  It can run under Windows 8 Pro, but not on Windows RT.  This makes getting software written for and offered through the newly minted Windows Store critical in the short term.  Without software, this platform is doomed to falter.

First Look: Microsoft Surface

OK, I've had 24 hours with the Surface at this point and I think Microsoft is on to something.  For years I have lamented how bloated Windows had become, due in large part to their unwillingness to abandon support for legacy software.  Building in support for software that goes back up to 20 years in some cases is bound to cause and operating system to bloat beyond all reason, and this makes for a sluggish resource hog.

With RT Microsoft has finally had an excuse to do what Apple did with the old Power-PC based software and start over.  This has allowed Microsoft to release a light, nimble, and responsive OS for the modern, mobile culture and I never expected to be able to say any of that about the guys from Redmond.

The surface is proof that Microsoft has been paying attention, and their hardware partners have not.  Light, portable, fully featured and well designed.  Who would have thought Microsoft was this good at designing hardware?  After decades of leaving hardware to others Surface is proof that Microsoft should have made this move a long time ago.

Stay tuned, we'll have reviews from the whole family ready to go by Monday.

Unboxing: Microsoft Surface RT

Just opened the box

Simplified, well designed packaging. Is this really from Microsoft?

Outside slip cover holds packaging for the Surface and the Touch Cover together

Simple, no frills packaging

Quick and simple setup...

On first launch there were fifteen apps that needed updating in the Modern UI

Even in their modern, stripped down new OS, a DOS prompt can be found...

Surface updated and ready to use....stay tuned for my first look

Windows 8 Launch Event - NYC

On Thursday, Oct. 25th Microsoft held a press event in New York City to formally launch their latest operating system, Windows 8.  A huge move forward from Windows 7, Windows 8 was built from the ground up to take advantage of touch screens and cloud services such as Microsoft's own SkyDrive service.  The big news, however is that for the first time Windows will run on an ARM processor much like those that power smart phones and tablets, while at the same time abandoning  all previous Windows software.  While the Pro version of windows 8 will allow older or "legacy" software to run as it did in older versions, the big push for Windows 8 is RT (Run-Time) which will only run new software available from the Windows App Store.

As with any new Windows release, this is a huge event.  The great news for consumers is that Windows 8 Pro will run on all Windows 7 personal computers, although in most cases without being able to take advantage of the new touch interface that makes it so great.  Upgrades start at $39.99 in the U.S. and are on sale as I write this post.  The big news however is all of the new computers built for the native touch interface, including all kinds of devices from large all-in-one desktop machines to portable tablets and literally every form factor in between.  All of the major PC manufacturers from Dell to Lenovo had new systems to announce, making this a big day for the whole industry.

The biggest news of the day was the release of the first Microsoft branded computer ever, Surface, a Windows RT tablet built from the ground up to bridge the gap between ultra-portables and tablets such as the iPad in the consumer space.  I'll have one today, and will post several items over the next few days while I put it through it's paces.

You can see the press events for both Windows 8 and the special event for the Surface tablet here.

 

Apple Special Event - "A little something to share"

For the first time in a while, Apple surprised us by pushing out a press release that they would be streaming today's event and adding a special events channel to AppleTV's.

iPhone 5 has sold faster than any other smartphone in history, selling more than (insert number her) in just a month, bringing the total number of iOS devices in use to more than 200 Million.  There are more than 700k apps in the app store, 275k made for iPad specifically.  More than 35 Billion application downloads since the launch of iOS, equalling more than $6.5 Billion paid to developers since it's launch.

First announcement for the day is a new version of iBooks, which is now going to be better integrated with iCloud, and includes a new auto-scroll feature to help you read without interaction (great when reading on the machines at the gym).

We have new Mac announcements!  First, the 13" MacBook Pro now has a Retina display.  20% Thinner, and weighing in a pound lighter at 3.75lbs.  Shipping Today with a 2.53GHz Core i5 processor, 8GB RAM, 256GB HDD for $1699.  

Next, Mac Mini is upgraded to the Ivy Bridge chipset with both i5 and i7 processors, expanding maximum RAM to 16GB and starting at $599 and shipping Today.

 

Finally, iMac is completely redesigned.  Just 5mm thick at the edges, this thing is insanely thin.  They have laminated the display to the glass, eliminating a 2mm air gap from prefious models.  They have removed the optical drive.  Available in 21.5" and 27" models, the new displays provide 75% less reflection, and are shipping color calibrated individually from the production line, a hug deal for folks in print and video industries.  Up to 32GB of RAM now available in the iMac, with the same processor upgrades to IVY Bridge chipsets as the other Macs announced today.

Huge change is the new "Fusion Drive" announced for the Mini and the iMac.  Drives include 128GB of RAM and any ammount of physical storage.  The entire OS and all pre-configured apps run in FLASH.  The software will re-configure storage, moving your more common apps and files to the faster flash storage.

21.5-inch: 2.7GHz

  • 2.7GHz quad-core Intel Core i5
  • Turbo Boost up to 3.2GHz
  • 8GB (two 4GB) memory
  • 1TB hard drive1
  • NVIDIA GeForce GT 640M with 512MB

  • Available in November
  • Free Shipping
  • $1,299.00

27-inch: 2.9GHz

  • 2.9GHz quad-core Intel Core i5
  • Turbo Boost up to 3.6GHz
  • 8GB (two 4GB) memory
  • 1TB hard drive1
  • NVIDIA GeForce GTX 660M with 512MB

  • Available in December
  • Free Shipping
  • $1,799.00

 

 New iPad! 100 Millionth iPad sold a few weeks ago.  4th Gen iPad is announced today.  Featuring the A6X processor from the iPhone 5.  Lightning Connector, with new adapters for VGA, HDMI, SD Card and USB.  Same prices as the previous models, starting at $499.  Also we now see the iPad Mini!  23% thinner than the iPad, weighing in at .68lbs.  Black and White with the same look as the iPhone 5 on the back.  7.9" Display, 1024x768 resolution.  All software for the iPad will be compatible since resolution is the same.  iPad mini will use the A5 processor from the iPad 2 and iPhone 4.  16GB starts at $329 with pre-orders on Friday the 26th and wi-fi versions shipping Nov. 2nd.  LTE version of the Mini will follow 2 weeks later on Nov. 16th

Review: iPod Nano (2012)

No product in Apple's recent history has had half as many form factor changes as the iPod Nano, now in it's 8th incarnation.  The latest version blends the previous two into something resembling what I would imagine the smallest possible iPhone incarnation.  With three rows of two icons there isn't much room on this display, but there is plenty of space for a music player, clock, and Nike+ integration.

Sound quality is the best I've heard on an iPod, but whether a sign of a new DSP chip or just the result of the new ear pods, I can't say. What I can say is that I'm impressed. I sampled music from Gary Clark, jr and various country and classical albums with great results.

If you are in the market for a new iPod, you can't go wrong with this one!

Budget tip: Cooking with beer

Many recipes, especially mine, call for beer. Often it is best to use heavy imported ales or micro-brews for this purpose due to stronger flavors that don't get washed down while cooking, but they can be expensive. Here's a solution that works well for me.

In the back of most supermarkets is a close out shelf of discontinued or about to expire merchandise. While usually it contains products most people don't buy, quite often I've found beer or wine that is either not going to be carried any more or has been on the shelf a little too long at great discounts. While it may not be optimum for drinking anymore, it still is useful for cooking! For instance, nothing is better as a liquid for a nice beef stew on a chilly fall evening than a robust brown ale, and I was able to get two bottles for the price of one at Safeway yesterday. I have seen some decent wines that would be great for cooking at similar prices on the back shelf of both Safeway and Albertson's. Save yourself some cash and pick them up when you see them. They are a great way to stretch your budget.

Remember, you don't have to like a beer or wine for drinking in order for it to be a great base for an amazing meal.

Flavors of Fall: Oven roasted lamb with Baked Fall Sweet Potato Mix

I love fall.  Brisk mornings and moderate temperatures.  The smell of the heater kicking on for the first time in months.  Most of all, I love the comfort food that fall brings.  Especially the early fall, when we have a bounty of fresh vegetables and aren't afraid of the house getting too hot to roast them in a warm oven for dinner.  

Last night I decided I was in the mood for Lamb.  When I was at the Feast of Portland I ran into the folks from American Lamb, who were handing out samples of their Lamb Rub.  A wonderful mix of Rosemary, Mustard Seed, Sea Salt, Pepper and other spices that is the easiest preperation I have ever had for lamb.

I paired the lamb with a fall favorite around our house, what I call my Fall Sweet Potato Mix.  An oven-roasted mix of sweet potatoes, yams, and apples coated in seasoning salt and cinnamon.  Super simple and a delicious piece of Fat Boy Heaven.

Lamb

Have your butcher butterfly and tie a leg of lamb (this removes the bone and trims up some of the fat)

Coat lamb roast with olive oil, then apply spice rub (as stated, I used American Lamb's 'Lamb Rub')

Roast in oven at 450 for 20 minutes and then reduce heat to 350 and continue to roast for 45-55 minutes or until internal temp reaches 140 degrees

Fall Sweet Potato Mix

3 medium Sweet Potatoes (yellow)

2 Large Yams (orange)

2 medium apples (I prefer a pie-crisp or Braeburn)

3 tablespoons cinnamon

2 tablespoons seasoning salt

1/8 cut olive oil

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350

Cut vegetables up into equal sized chunks.  I usually trim the yam and slice it, then cut the slices in half or quarter them depending on how rough I want the texture to look.

Combine cut vegetables in a 1-gallon zip lock bag.

Add oil and shake to coat evenly

Add spices and shake until well coated

Arrange around meat or on baking sheet and bake until tender

Review: iPhone 5

OK, now that I've had a little over a week with the iPhone 5, I can tell you that it is the best iPhone yet without reservation.  While many have criticised Apple for not really innovating, I think there are really a few innovations here that have been over looked.  

A new connector - Lightning

The Lightning connector may not seem like a big deal, or to others has been seen as an inconvenience, but is a game changer in my book.  Yes, it will mean new accessories will need to be purchased.  It means I need to have 2 different adapters in my car, one for the iPhones Carrie and I have, one for our iPads and older iPhones the kids carry.  However, the advantage of being able to just plug a cable in without fumbling to make sure the correct side is up while driving is a HUGE improvement not just to use but to safety in a world where many of us plug our phones into our cars for everything from entertainment while driving to GPS navigation.

Maps

While the maps are not perfect (or even ready to be used for navigation in most areas), they are a sign that Apple is once again trying to branch out into existing areas without reliance on partners.  While this could backfire like the ill-fated Ping service or the iPod Hi-Fi, it could end up making Apple a player in a market they have left to others in the past.  Apple has always been a company that tries to do thing themselves when unhappy with the way partners or other companies are doing things.  Google would not give them the turn-by-turn directions that were needed to really integrate maps properly, preferring to reserve that aspect to it's own Android platform.  This left Apple with a choice:  either continue to let media and users see them as sub-par to Google, or make a change.  While they may not be firing on all cylinders to start with in iOS 6 with maps, you can expect that to change quickly.  Now that they can see the places improvement is needed, Apple can get people and processes on board to address the issues and get things right.

Specs/Performance

The iPhone 5 is by far the fastest iPhone, and according to tests from the major hardware sites, the fastest Smartphone on the market.  Combined with a true HD screen and a smaller form factor the iPhone 5 sets the standard once again for performance and features.  It is still the phone everyone envys, and is the only phone in the category that creates the kind of frenzy we saw at launch.  No other smartphone has ever sold-out presale availability in less than an hour.  No other phone in the category has EVER sold more than 4 million units in the first weekend.  In every way that matters to Wall Street and consumers, the iPhone 5 is a winner.

There are a lot of sites that can give you performance breakdowns and benchmarks.  What I want you to know is that you will not be disappointed in this purchase, now or in 6 months.  Lets see any other device give you that.

Dessert time: Old South Coca-Cola Cake

When trying to decide what kind of cake to make for my Daughter's birthday today I started thinking back to a recipe my Grandmother made when I was little. I was reintroduced to it when I was in college down in Florida. A nice, light chocolate flavor combined with the spice from the cola and a smooth buttery taste from the glaze give you all you could ask for in a moist, amazing cake.  Here is how you make it:

YIELD 1 Cake 

ACTIVE TIME 10-15 minutes

TOTAL TIME 60 minutes

INGREDIENTS

Flour Mix

2 cups flour
2 cups sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda** 1/2 tsp cinnamon

Hot mix

1 cup butter

1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

1 cup coca-cola (from bottle is my preference!) 1/2 cup buttermilk

Add to combined mixture:

2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract

Glaze

1/2 cup butter
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder 1/2 cup coca cola
4 cups of confectioners’ sugar

INSTRUCTIONS

  1. Preheat oven to 350, and grease up (I like Crisco) a 9×13 (or so) pan.

  2. Mix flour mix ingredients together in a bowl

  3. Mix hot mix ingredients in a saucepan over medium high heat stir this up good until it boils

  4. Stir two mixes together, then add eggs and vanilla extract

  5. Bake at 350 for 30 minutes

  6. When cake is nearly done, make glaze in saucepan, bringing first three ingredients to a boil and then stirring in sugar until smooth. Keep on low so glaze is warm when pouring over the cake.

  7. Once cake is out of oven, immediately pour glaze over the top, then allow to set for 5- 10 minutes before serving. 
  8. Enjoy a big piece of Fat Boy Heaven!

Night Out: Ringside Fish House

Friday night we went out with Carrie's sister Lisa and her husband James for dinner, and decided to try the Ringside Fish house in the Fox Tower.  Dinner was great, and Glen, our waiter was phenomenal. From drink recommendations to great menu explanations it was a great night. The truffle frites and kalamari were great starters, and the lobster mashed potatoes were a decadent treat that should be added to any dinner order. We will definitely be back to sample even more of the menu.  Here are pictures and a break down of each element of my meal:

Crab frites:
Amazing! Super crisp fried potatoes topped with Truffle Hollandaise and large lumps of crab. Not to be missed.

Kalamari:
Done unlike any you've tried before. Done Vietnamese street style with chiles and quick-pickled veggies.  Not breaded or fried like you might expect when you see it on the menu.  You have totry this if you get a chance.

Fennel and corn chowder:
Amazing richness hits you immediately, but combines with the sharp bacon and fennel to make an amazing soup.

Surf & Turf w/ crab mac & cheese and lobster mashed potatoes:

Steak medallions served with jumbo prawns. Perfectly cooked steak. Lobster mashed potatoes were amazingly rich.  Prawns were lightly seasoned and a perfect light foil to the rich steak and mashed potatoes.

 

Dinner Time made SIMPLE: Pannekoeken

Tonight I was looking for something fast and easy to do for dinner, and decided to pull out an old recipe from my mis-spent childhood helping my Dad in the kitchen.  We did this a few times a month for dinners or breakfasts with quite a few varieties.  Tonight I did it very basic and traditional, served with lemon juice and powdered sugar.  The recipe is VERY simple:

Pannekoeken

3 eggs

1/2 cup flour

1/2 cup milk

1 tablespoon butter

1 tablespoon lemon juice

Powdered Sugar

Directions:

1.  Preheat oven to 425

2.  Mix eggs, flour, and milk together in a mixing bowl

3.  Put butter in a well seasoned cast iron skillet and place in over for 5 minutes (butter will melt and begin to brown)

4. Remove skillet from oven and tilt around in a circular motion to make sure butter coats the sides of the pan, and then add batter.

5. Quickly return pan to oven so that it does not cool, and bake for 20 minutes.

6. Sprinkle with lemon juice and then sift powdered sugar over the top.

7. Remove and serve up a piece of Fat Boy Heaven!

 

Notes:  I doubled the recipe and used a 2" deep 12x24 baking pan.  This recipe can be easily adapted by making additions to the batter.  One of my favorites is to brown 3-4 slices of bacon, then both substitute bacon grease for the butter and sprinkle crumbled bacon into batter after adding it to the pan.  Another great way to dress it up is to simply add Lingden Berries to the batter, which compliment the lemon very nicely.

Here's what it looks like plated!

Dinner Time: Slow Cooker Pumpkin Maple Pulled Pork

I was looking through recipes last night, and thought this one seemed an awesome way to blend summer BBQ with the flavors of fall.  It really has amazing depth of flavor, and hits spice notes you don't usually think of as being a part of BBQ.  The cloves and allspice from the pumpkin pie spice blend with the maple and pumpkin to smell like thanksgiving came to your backyard BBQ.  Add to the thanksgiving feel the creamy richness of slow-cooked pork and you end up with an amazing and EASY dinner.  I served this with onion hamburger buns, but you can use any bun you prefer.  Next time I think I'll use a corn-muffin style bun to bring in the cornbread stuffing element.  Enjoy another little piece of Fat Boy Heaven right here:

Slow Cooker Pumpkin Maple Pulled Pork

If you like pulled pork, you're going to love this beautiful recipe for slow cooker pulled pork. Rich & salty, with just enough sweet to make you crave it nightly, you're gonna love this recipe twist!

YIELD 8 servings

ACTIVE TIME 5 minutes

TOTAL TIME 4 hours

INGREDIENTS

3 pound pork roast

3/4 cup pumpkin puree

2/3 cup brown sugar

1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice

1 1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

1 teaspoon maple extract

2 tablespoons bourbon

hamburger buns

INSTRUCTIONS

1.  Place pork roast in a slow cooker. Add the pumpkin puree, brown sugar, pumpkin pie spice, salt, Worcestershire sauce, bourbon, and maple extract. Use a spatula to mix together the pumpkin mixture over the top of the pork. Cover and set slow cooker to high. Cook for 4-6 hours, or until pork is tender.

2.  Using two forks, pull the pork apart until well shredded. Stir well into the pumpkin mixture. Cover and allow to cook for another hour, until the sauce thickens.

3.  Spoon mixture onto hamburger buns. Serve and enjoy!