Sunrise Memphis

A new breakfast restaurant called Sun Rise opened in the old Neely's BBQ building on Jefferson. The chef in charge is none other than Ryan Trim, chef and co-owner at Sweetgrass. His menu is a bit interesting, it has a lot of unexpected dishes. For those unadventurous souls the breakfast classics are on the menu.  The art and ambiance is down home and rustic.

I ordered the rice bowl, Mom ordered the biscuit bacon and egg sandwich, and Dad ordered the Italian roast beef sandwich. Having a rice bowl for breakfast was quite the experience. It contained pork slices that were really good, they had a nice teriyaki glaze that was well balanced between spice-soy-sweet. It was a stellar glaze. 

The rest of the components were nice nothing too special. Just rice, kimchi, egg, chopped scallion, and carrots.


Dad's sandwich was good, they used strange bread it was a bit dense, but it held up to the au jus quite well.
  The flavors were ok, it could have used more herbs or spices on the meat. Mom's biscuit was also a bit dense, and the bacon was well bacon hard to say anything bad about it.
Sunrise is open from 5am to 3pm everyday. 

Breakfast is one of those meals that is a real treat at a restaurant, just like appetizers or dessert.

Love the cabbage,
Logan.

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The Pig and Pint

On a recent trip south I asked Siri for the best restaurant near me and she recommended the Pig and Pint, in Jackson Mississippi.
The premise of the place is a new spin on BBQ and beer. Now I'm too young to drink so ask Mom about the beer. I ordered the bacon melt, the pork belly corndog, and the fried green tomatoes.
The sandwich was really good, it had some slightly acidic collard greens in it that helped balance out the richness of the brisket and pork belly. It was also served with comeback dressing. It was a sophisticated melt and the comeback dressing made me want to "comeback".


Now, on to the pork belly corndogs, for corndogs they were alright.  The rich sweet batter and the pork belly had a good contrast.  I think the pork belly could have been rendered just a bit more. The star of the dish was the dipping sauce. It was a smoked tomato ginger jam that was truly incredible. 

The fried green tomatoes followed the same path as the corndogs. Solid but awesome once you dip them in the tangy sauce. The corn coating was light and crips, all in all a solid fried green tomato.

The Pig and Pint made a really good lunch. I loved how they are trying new things with classic old flavors and the rows upon rows of trophies for bbq garuntee a good lunch. I wouldn't get those corn dogs again but there are other things calling my name.
 I hope to head south again soon and I know I will stop back. 

Thanks, Siri!

Love the cabbage,
Logan.

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Never doubt your"self"

Self Publishing Lessons-

1. Find a really nice person at the Printer to talk to - you will be calling them all the time.

2. Contracts contracts contracts- write it down!

3. Putting Skin in the Game, or paying- is PAINFUL, ok, a little over exaggerated but no risk no reward!

When I started to do the graphic novel first thing I did was write everything I expected and I would deliver down. I made sure that Cindy Tan knew I was serious and valued her talent. Also I took some thyme to find the right people for each job.

Then I crafted out all of my Characters- this was the fun part. I know who is coming and you don't!
I wrote their back stories likes dislikes and even favorite colors, everything needed to make a personality. These characters are very real to me, and understanding how they must be consistent yet changing and deciding how the events effect them is just the most fun.

Next Cindy drew them and like a true mind reader I loved them! She is freaking amazing to be honest I am the luckiest person she agreed to help me. 

When the first half was finished and the concept mapped out for the second half then I wrote the second half. This was much harder- and less fun as story telling it is really the baking part of the book( I hate baking). That means the rules and guides and info I wanted to share were much more concrete and much less well, fun.

Fun started to kick back in when all the pages came together- we laid out the entire book and WOW!

I returned to the printer and got 3 copies - fantastic to feel and see the entire years work come together, making the collector editions and concept art and all that fun stuff is just indescribable. After the shock wore off we were back to work changing proofing and more minor detail. Another lesson, embrace your inner perfectionist after all the work put in don't stop short of a few things here and there. 

Did I mention editing and more editing and even more editing---no... well next time I am hiring a proof reader and editor. Please apply below!

Hope you enjoy these sneak peeeks-

Love the cabbage
Logan

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CookBooks or Story Books or Books...

CookBooks and other Odities...

The photo that got the ball rolling

When you are dreaming of being a chef you can't help but dream of making a cookbook. The problem for me is I don't use them. I know your thinking WHAT!

But it is true.


I have only opened 3-4 in my entire life. One was to see Gordon Ramsay's Autograph, one was to get a cake recipe Betty Crocker, standard Martha Stewart's Cookie book ( I don't like to bake) and one was a gift and I kinda wanted to look at the pictures.


So writing a cookbook seemed totally foreign to me- I mean honestly, do you follow recipes?

Check my poll on twitter- I will pin a tweet poll there


My first idea was to write a book to teach you how to think like I do- with lots of photos and space for my readers to explore. I mean a big ole book. Problem with that is wow. it a lot of work and a lot of money to produce and you would have to re-imagine cooking to see it how I do.


I started brainstorming with my Mom and we thought about what I love, who I am, and a bunch of other stuff.  This crazy girl on Instagram drew me on the show in this wild manga style now I mean wicked cool. It stuck with Mom- said write a Graphic Novel.


I read Graphics, love them for the fun way they tell a story in a newer style. They help me get through some classics like Shakespeare and I love Manga art. You might not know this but Japan is my goal city and Manga is like a gateway to the cool world of perfect food and cute things, lots of cute things.

I started by messaging this crazy girl- crazy talented and well,l say crazy cause she said yes! She said she would draw my story. I had to make some sacrifices. I was writing a different series of stories about another character and I really, really did not want to write about a fictional me. It is rather weird to write about yourself as a character and exactly how it all fit together. But I did it.

Today my first Novel a Graphic Novel Adventure Cookbook is going to press. The crazy talented girl Cindy Tan is my Illustrator, Micah Phil is my colorist and letterer, my Aunt did the proof reading, It is a huge group effort. My Gran helped with the title, Cooking Dreams.

I like it- what would Cooked Dreams taste like? Success? I am still thinking about that!
Here are some cool photos of the entire process and trust me it was a long one.







Love the Cabbage,
Logan

You can also Follow me on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, and Vine.

Well, Butter my Biscuits...

The National Cornbread Festival!

I really enjoy a good festival, so when I saw the National Cornbread Festival in South Pittsburg TN. I had to go. Lodge talked to me and I was selected to be the Emcee of the Kid's Cook Off. 

It took some convincing to get Dad to drive but we set off on a road trip. Yaaa, road trips are so much fun. After the five hour car ride we finally arrived. 

The festival was a great mix of, art, music, carnival fun, and of course great corn bread. I Emceed the 4-H cornbread cook off. That means 4th graders compete for $500 and bake their recipe for the win. The tension was high, these kids all really wanted to win. When your 9-10 years old 500 bucks is a lot of money. Heck, it is a lot of money to just about everyone.

The festival sponsored by Lodge Cast Iron and Martha White cornbread mix was huge almost 30K of people showed up for the fun. 

It's interesting to learn about the benefits of cooking in cast iron and the love affair cast iron has with cornbread. One tip I learned was to pre-heat your cast iron pan before pouring in the corn bread to make sure it won't stick. I use cast iron now and then but with some new tricks and a new skillet, of course, it might be my go to pan. 
I also found this really cool knife made out of an old railroad spike that I just can't wait to try. 

The high point of the whole trip was defiantly the Lodge Foundry tour. Seeing how such a classic and distinctly American product is made and taking a trip back in thyme a little bit looking at how a business evolved since 1896. Actually noticing when machinery changed and the break room got redesigned was quite fascinating.

Cast iron is one of those cooking methods that has a learning curve but if your able to master it then it will work forever, like forever.
First the pans need to be seasoned and then you need to care for these pans carefully. It isn't too much extra work and it is pretty easy once you commit to your pan. Name your skillet it helps.

Watch for me to post up a video on the care and seasoning of a pan or two and you might just join me in loving this sustainable and healthy cookware. 
Hit this link for a cool 360' video I took in the foundry! 

https://s.insta360.com/p/0aab1274c0a391129542431bb3279723

Love the Cabbage,
Logan

You can also Follow me on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, and Vine.

India...The Land of Orange

India Continued

When you go to India it is easy to forget great moments like having lunch on a rooftop overlooking the Taj Mahal. I am not sure why?! Maybe because it is so VIBRANT... or SPICY...or INDIA 

Eating on that roof  was just as incredible as it sounds. The meal was also quite delicious. The lunch was themed like the Munghals liked to eat, with a lot of different bowls of curries and other tasty treats. My favorite curry was the Agra special lamb curry close second was the pannier cheese tomato curry it was kind of a mix between a curry and something I don't know, but it was really, really good. 

The lamb curry was layered with flavors and the dish showcased the regional nature of Indian cooking, with the pannier curry it was just the immense lusciousness of the cheese and how the tomato-ish sauce complemented the entire meal. Here is the list of all the little dishes, Agra lamb curry, chicken curry, pannier curry, dhal, some really good cauliflower. 
Now, on to the inside the dishes they were the cake ball dessert, a dipping sauce which was creamy and slightly sour, some tandoori chicken, fish, and lamb. You know there is a lot of food if there is a list within a list.

Also there were three types of naan bread the original a chickpea version and a spinach one. Over all the meal was a perfect way to start an adventure since there was a little bit of everything. 


This is when you discover that India is a land of diverse food and OMG SWEETS. In the USA we only get some little balls, the dry milk cake, and rice pudding- but in INDIA sweets rule the land.

In Agra the local sweet is a white pumpkin. They cook and crystallize it an amazing way that it is 1/2 dried fruit and 1/2 fried fruit I think I really dont know. I loved the small triangles stuffed with beetle nut and rose but we brought home just the plain sugared pumpkin.


Enjoy these photos and check back - I still have to share Bangalore and Kolkata!

Love the Adventure
Logan

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My Vines - #PlayWithYourFood

These are small videos I made that are no more than 6.5 seconds, that are posted on Vine. Hope you like them. I better publish before Vine Vanishes.

I have not made one in a long time but I just loved the idea.

Here's my Vine:   https://vine.co/Logan.Jr.Chef

You can also Follow me on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, and Vine.

The long wait is Over

IKEA


The long wait is finally over, Memphis has an IKEA! No more going to Atlanta for all those cute and well planed kitchens. 
Ikea is huge. Well, it's bigger than huge, it's massive and filled with everything you need to live(excluding a cat tree) including a Swedish market and mini restaurant. All this inside a furniture store, crazy. I think I could survive the apocalypse in there. 
It is really hard not to give the Swedish food a try, there are two restaurants one in the front and one hidden inside. I ate in the hidden one. I had the legendary meatballs, a cup of chicken soup and shared a salad plus the special juices. Mom got the marzipan dessert. The meatballs were tasty and just really classic. The sides were mashed potatoes, lingon berry jelly, roasted vegetables and gravy overall it was a nicely composed simple, classic dish with nothing to dislike. In retrospect I should have gotten the extra side of meat balls. I could have eaten another scoop and managed to eat some of Mom's. I was surprised how juicy the meatballs were cause they looked rather dry.

The soup was ok and the salad was fresh. It was just a salad. Mom had marzipan dessert and said it was good.  

I really really want Ikea to redesigned my kitchen and help tame the chaos with all that organization and innovation. I mean it they have the coolest kitchen stuff. I loved the non electric mixer, and those pull out drawers. Some teens have slept overnight inside of Ikea all though that is not approved it still sounds like fun.  When you live in 100 year old house the kitchen is a dinosaur compared to the IKEA design.

Shoot me an email with your favorite IKEA item so I can go pick one up too!

Love the Cabbage Leaf
Logan

You can also Follow me on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, and Vine.

My Interview with WKNO. PBS interview in Memphis,TN

My Interview with WKNO. PBS interview in Memphis,TN

This was so much fun and my last local tv station to be on. Yes, I have even been on Library TV.






WKNO, thanks for having me.

Love the Cabbage Leaf,
Logan

You can also Follow me on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, and Vine.

Shihan Chef Nobu

On my latest trip to Los Angeles I got a reservation, thanks to my Uncle Isreal to the famous Matsuhisa it normally takes a year to get a reservation, so this is a HUGE deal. 

Matsuhisa is Chef Nobu's very first restaurant, it is arguably the best sushi place in the USA!

The restaurant is very, very tiny the sushi bar is very narrow not even two people can fit through! The dinning room is also very small but there is still room for lots of famous people. I sat at a table and Kenny G was eating behind me, how cool!

But now on to the yummy part, for an appetizer I got the toro tartare with caviar in a dashi broth. The toro tartare was intricately flavored yet keeping the fish's natural flavor and the caviar nicely complemented the fish, The toro tartare had  a very bold dashi broth that was very strong in that great mouthwatering umumi flavor.

Overall,it was an awesome way to start a meal.

Next, I ordered some tuna sushi and it was interesting how the tuna had a vinegary sauce and Chef Nobu's dry miso seasoning. It was very good and a new experience for me and a very interesting way to make sushi.

My Aunt ordered the tempura plate and I got to try the shrimp tempura, which was very light with a
dipping sauce, always a classic.

Dad ordered the fish and chips it was very simple but it was the best fish and chips I have ever had.

I also got some normal tuna sushi it was absolutely perfect the rice was sticky and absorbed the soy sauce perfectly the tuna was rich, tender, umaumi, and every thing you could want one bite of sushi to be, no other sushi will ever top it.

Except another order of sushi from Matsuhisa!

We got desert from Chef Nobu and it had shaved ice and great mochi and some banana tubes they were all very good.

Chef Nobu made an unexpected stop at Matsuhisa and came around meeting the dinners and I talked to him and he was very happy! I got to tour the very, very ,very tiny kitchen, I saw the dish washers and how the restaurant can't function with out them and I saw the little grill area and the tiny sushi bar and how each plate is like a canvas and they put the seasoning and oils on it like art. Art that is why I love sushi so much- simple, elegant, purposeful food.

I will forever remember the advice Shihan Chef Nobu gave me.

   

Love the tuna, Leaf

Logan

The Smoking Gun, a who done it?

The Smoking Gun is made by Polyscience.

Well, let's start with Polyscience (http://www.polyscienceculinary.com/). They are one of the best modernist food tool providers around. They are true innovators, and they help us cook interesting "out of the box" type of food.

One of Polyscience's many tools is the Smoking Gun.

There are many reasons why I use it is, but the biggest is because I'm from Memphis - home of the slow smoked BBQ. Smokey food rules the city and it is a huge part of our local food culture. 

The Smoking Gun (http://www.polyscienceculinary.com/the-smoking-gun.php) shoots smoke out a tube and you put the tube in a bag with whatever you want to smoke, and leave it in there for a few minutes. It is that easy, and the solid smokey taste is real. It has no artificial tones of fake smoke. 

They offer several kinds of woods. Hickory is the strongest and boldest flavor, It will make you go WOW. While Cherry and Apple are more subtle and sweeter.

If you use your smoking gun a lot, the smoke may start to taste bitter- either get some new tube or soak your tube in bleach and water. 

Now, I have experimented quite a bit with the smoking gun and I have over 40 recipes so this is not just a one shot gun!

Love the Cabbage Leaf,

Logan

What Do You Do After You Win MasterChef Jr ?

You go to Universal Studios!

Behind the Scenes- First off after you win Masterchef Jr there is just a lot of waiting and work. Interviews, meetings...but you are really happy, so it is all good!

Now my Aunt and Uncle live in the LA area, so we popped in for a visit. We stayed with them a couple of days and had a great time. It was good to relax.

My Uncle works at Universal Studios so he hooked us up with a once in a lifetime trip to the Park. I mean we had passes and great food and fast passes and I even got to met the Head Executive Chef for Universal. I mean this is the guy who feeds over 20,000 people a DAY! Chef Eric was crazy nice to me! Now we could not tell him anything about what I had just done, so the Chef was just sharing his time with a fellow foodie.

 It was Amazing! I mean they have a great system to make and distribute all that food around the park and they make literally tons of it!
  Gru's Cafe was the Bomb - the fried mac and cheese and the Chicken and minion cupcakes all so good!

 

The V.I.P. had the prettiest buffet with the tastiest food ever. 

Everything was fresh and well cooked. Chef Eric runs a great staff of Chefs and restaurant managers. Everyone was friendly and I had the best day!

 

It was super fun and relaxing! Those fast passes really made it the best experience and the great staff made me feel like a rockstar. I was feeling pretty confused about winning and not being able to celebrate so this was just the most exciting way to celebrate without telling anyone!

Thanks Chef Eric, Uncle Israel, Universal staff. I had a blast and the new Minion ride was the best.

Masterchef Junior Logan

All My Blog Posts on MasterChef Junior Season 2 Episodes - Logan

Here are the links to all my blog posts for MasterChef Junior (Season 2) USA 2014

Episode 7: MasterChef Junior Final Episode : I AM THE MASTERCHEF JUNIOR

http://orderupwithlogan.blogspot.com/2014/12/masterchef-junior-final-episode-i-am.html

Episode 6 :  Episode 6 MasterChef Junior The Attack of The Salmon – Logan

http://orderupwithlogan.blogspot.com/2014/12/episode-6-masterchef-junior-attack-of.html

Episode 5:  Episode 5 The Pop Up In MasterChef Junior

http://orderupwithlogan.blogspot.com/2014/12/episode-5-pop-up-in-masterchef-junior.html

Episode 4:  MasterChef Junior Episode 4 Signature Dish

http://orderupwithlogan.blogspot.com/2014/11/masterchef-junior-episode-4-signature.html

  

Episode 3:  MasterChef Junior Episode 3 The Journey Continues

http://orderupwithlogan.blogspot.com/2014/11/masterchef-junior-episode-3-journey.html

Episode 2:  The MasterChef Junior Experience : Episode 2 - Pie??? Really!

http://orderupwithlogan.blogspot.com/2014/11/the-masterchef-junior-experience.html

Episode 1:  MCJ2 I finally get into the Masterchef Kitchen

http://orderupwithlogan.blogspot.com/2014/11/mcj2-i-finally-get-into-masterchef.html

Pre-Show:  The Beginning - From Memphis to Hollywood : MasterChef Junior Season 2 http://orderupwithlogan.blogspot.com/2014/11/the-beginning-from-memphis-to-hollywood.html

MasterChef Junior Episode 3 The Journey Continues

From behind the scenes:

By now you know I rock the bow tie. All of my ties were hand-made by my Godmother Aunt Niki. She made them in like one day when I found out I made the cast. Well, the head of wardrobe and my Mom are a bit tie challenged so it is Abby's Dad who does most of the tieing for me. We also watched this funny video from South Carolina on mornings we didn't want to bother Abby's Dad. By the way, Abby's Dad is the Best! He is so funny!

Our challenge today was Cupcakes... I don't like cake or really even sweets so this was not making me very happy. They had this huge box and everyone just grabbed the cakes I might have picked last and I got a pink cupcake. My partner was Sean. Now this was a huge vote in my favor cause Sean is a great but he is also close to my size and over all a pretty cool hipster guy. We were tied together and we had to bake cupcakes. Now, even though I don't like sweets I can nail a cupcake- my plan a mix of Meyer lemon and basil with basil sugar. I love the complex clean taste with the sugar and I love the hint of savory you can get if the balance is just right. BUT baking tied to another person, frosting is flying and Sean had big plans- for me it is always well developed flavors but for Sean it is the POW.

Well, with some bumps and kicks and screams we got our cupcakes done. Then we waited, and waited the pressure building till they called us up! Now always "EXPECT THE UNEXPECTED", but it was for the top prize. You would think that meant I thought I had a guaranteed pass into the next round, but no I was scared they would change the rules and I would be cooking for my life again!

I mean, I like the cooking part but the life part.... not so much....

Then we got the advantage- to this day I am not sure whether Sean wanted the Shepherd's Pie or I did... it just seemed like the easiest hardest thing to cook. So we chose it! I mean for me the curry would have been much harder with the threat of it could kill the judges chicken....

Our friends got to talk to their Mum cause we all met Gordon's Mum and she was super nice. I don't think it helped with the nerves for the others. It would not have helped me. I just want to turn up the gas and go for it.

It was totally a shock when Mitch and Sam got eliminated. Sam is a really funny guy. He tells jokes all the time and Mitch is a fantastic Soccer player as well as cook! I sure want him on my next soccer team I know we would win every game.

I survived... keep watching...

Love the cabbage leaf,
Logan

PS If you are wondering the best place to have Tea is in the MasterChef kitchen it was AMAZING!




Links to all my blog posts on the episodes:

Episode 7: MasterChef Junior Final Episode : I AM THE MASTERCHEF JUNIOR

http://orderupwithlogan.blogspot.com/2014/12/masterchef-junior-final-episode-i-am.html

Episode 6 :  Episode 6 MasterChef Junior The Attack of The Salmon – Logan

http://orderupwithlogan.blogspot.com/2014/12/episode-6-masterchef-junior-attack-of.html

Episode 5:  Episode 5 The Pop Up In MasterChef Junior

http://orderupwithlogan.blogspot.com/2014/12/episode-5-pop-up-in-masterchef-junior.html

Episode 4:  MasterChef Junior Episode 4 Signature Dish

http://orderupwithlogan.blogspot.com/2014/11/masterchef-junior-episode-4-signature.html

  

Episode 3:  MasterChef Junior Episode 3 The Journey Continues

http://orderupwithlogan.blogspot.com/2014/11/masterchef-junior-episode-3-journey.html

Episode 2:  The MasterChef Junior Experience : Episode 2 - Pie??? Really!

http://orderupwithlogan.blogspot.com/2014/11/the-masterchef-junior-experience.html

Episode 1:  MCJ2 I finally get into the Masterchef Kitchen

http://orderupwithlogan.blogspot.com/2014/11/mcj2-i-finally-get-into-masterchef.html

Pre-Show:  The Beginning - From Memphis to Hollywood : MasterChef Junior Season 2

http://orderupwithlogan.blogspot.com/2014/11/the-beginning-from-memphis-to-hollywood.html