Ok, Memphis, if you have not tried Felecia Suzanne your missing something special. Chef Felicia was Emeril's Bam apprentice and she runs one of the tightest kitchens in Memphis. She is in the kitchen expatiating and really working the line.
I loved it!
She invited me to do a fund raiser Dishes for Wishes and tossed in this exclusive dinner in her kitchen. Now most Chefs try too keep folks out of the Kitchen but Chef Felicia opens hers up on a regular basis and it is entertainment to the max.
She let me make up some menu items and BAM! we were off!
I am not going to talk much but let these pictures speak for me!
If you missed it you missed a TREAT!
I, then went back a few weeks later for the Dishes-For-Wishes main event and I had even for fun. Cooking and Serving and helping wishes come true. If you don't know Make-A-Wish provides wishes for kids who are sick. I mean how cool is that.
If Felicia Suzanne ever offers me the chance to work in her kitchen I assure you I will say YES!
So, run don't walk down town and have dinner or lunch tell them Logan sent you! I promise some 4 star food from an exceptional Chef and a Crack TEAM! Thanks for having me.
When you get invited to do a spot for the Oscars-- first thing you do it think "what do I wear" LOL Not a problem for a Chef.... I worried what will I cook?! This was a great fun day and I had a blast- sorry it took so long for me to write! I am trying to get back in the swing of blogging!
Sweet, Hot and Low Jazz Chicken and Waffles (Inspired by Whiplash)
Drummies
Ingredients
20 chicken Drummies
part of the chicken wings
3 cups buttermilk
Salt and pepper
2 eggs
1 cup buttermilk
1 1/2 Tablespoons
Franks Hot Sauce
2 cups flour
1/2 teaspoon Hungarian
Paprika
1/2teaspoons Onion
Powder
1/4 teaspoons black
pepper
1/4teaspoon salt
Directions
1. Season the drummies with salt and pepper,
then drop into 2 cup buttermilk, and marinade for 2 hrs in refrigerator.
2. After marinating, remove the drummies and
pat them dry on paper towel.
3. Dredge the Drummies in flour mixture (3
cups flour, 1/2teaspoon Hungarian Paprika, ½ teaspoons Onion Powder, 1/4teaspoons
black pepper, and ¼ teaspoon salt)
4. Make egg mixture which consists of 2 eggs,
1 cup of buttermilk, and 1 1/2 Tablespoons Franks Hot Sauce.
5. Create flour mixture which consists of 3
cups flour, 1/2teaspoon Hungarian Paprika, ½ teaspoons Onion Powder, 1/4
teaspoons black pepper, and ¼ teaspoon salt
6. Dredge drummies into the egg mixture and
then back in the flour.
7. Dredge the drummies again in the flour
mixture. This should make a thick coat
on the drummies.
8. Set on a rack and prepare to fry.
9. Heat 3-4 cups of Oil (peanut) to 325 F
degrees in a skillet and fry the drummies until brown.
Temperature of the
meat should be 190 degrees F (roughly 10 minutes).
Jazz Honey
Ingredients
4 Tablespoons Butter
4 Tablespoons Honey
1/4 Teaspoon cayenne
powder
1 teaspoon chili
powder
1/2 teaspoon powdered
garlic
Directions
Melt butter in small
sauce pan, add in honey and melt the two together by stirring. Then, add in the
spices and continue to stir. This should be served warm. Be careful not boil
the sauce.
Savory Cornmeal
Waffles with Herbs
Ingredients
4 Tablespoons butter
melted and let cool
1 cup cornmeal
(stoneground)
1 cup flour
2 tablespoons baking
powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
¼ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon of sugar
2 cups buttermilk
2 large eggs
½ teaspoon basil
1/2 teaspoon oregano
½ teaspoon thyme
Directions
1.Heat waffle iron and
spray with cooking spray before using.
2. Mix dry ingredients
together in one bowl.
3. Mix wet ingredients
together in another bowl.
4. Combine the two
together and stir until just blended.
5. Scoop into the
waffle iron and cook until brown.
6. Assemble the dish
by plating the hot waffle topping with the drummies and drizzling with the
spicy jazz honey sauce.
**You can decrease the
heat (spiciness) with less cayenne or knock it up by adding more.
After making the best darned smoked chicken, it was time for the pork.
Boneless pork cutlets are notoriously dry and hard to cook perfect. The Sous Vide does the best best job (http://www.polyscienceculinary.com/).
My first boneless chop I wrapped in bacon and tucked onions under the bacon. This was vacuum sealed and put in the bath at 144.F. After 1 hour to 1 hour 30 min, the pork was cooked. I removed it from the bag and pan seared it for a perfect pork chop. The meat was so tender and the bacon browned up. It tasted really good. This was my WORST recipe, but it was pretty darn good.
I took another boneless chop and rubbed it with my own Memphis BBQ Rub and smoked it with my Smoking Gun, and then sealed into the Sous Vide. This gave an almost instant flavor of a slow cooked BBQ - so popular here in Memphis. I pan seared the meat just to give it some brown color. My Dad loved it and he really hates this kind of meat as it is too dry. He enjoyed the pork with a simple slaw and some pickle beets. If you follow my Blog, you know my Dad is no foodie and he hates dry meat. If you do too, then the Sous Vide should be in your line up.
My last creation with the pork was to take the chop add 1/2 cup of apple butter, salt pepper, and an extra 1/2 Teaspoon of sugar to the bag, I vacuumed sealed it and cooked it in the same round in my Sous Vide. This was the best. I removed it and pan seared it for a bit of color, and served with an easy potato pancake and some red cabbage. It is so good! The apple flavor goes through the meat and it is just sweet enough to be good. This chop was all mine, no sharing.
I can tell you that it is an amazing tool for things you that usually cook dry. The perfect temperature is so great and watching it in the bath is fun too. I am glad I have one. And I hope to share more of my Sous vide successes with you in the the future. Love the Cabbage Leaf, Logan PS Cous Cous cooks like a dream in the Sous Vide. I Love Love Love it!
One of my favorite things about Masterchef Jr, was that they sent me on press tour.
I went to Nashville and Atlanta and my favorite restaurant on that tour was the PineWood Social Club (http://pinewoodsocial.com/). The Pine Wood Social Club is owned by Max Goldberg.
Now, Max has created this awesome restaurant with fun games and great food. Normally when you think of food and fun you get Chuck E. Cheese. But this is totally the opposite! I could spend days in there,it has bowling allies, boccie ball, even a pool, and I'm positive there's an Xbox in the back. If I don't find it on my next visit I will see if Max can put one in that air-stream for us!
Now on to the food; I ordered a fabulous coffee, a catfish sandwich, a hummus appetizer, and Mama got a burger.
Let's start with the fabulous coffee- well, it was fabulous nice and dark and creamy, and JUST fabulous. Next the appetizer, the hummus was nice and fresh and the chips were interesting, overall I liked it. When you live in the south you have to eat at least one fried catfish po-boy or sandwich. The catfish sandwich was delicious, to say the least, it had lettuce and tomato and a light creamy tarter, very simple. But still great! Mama's burger was fantastic !!! It was so good I had to steal some of the burger! It had a wonderful flavorful beefy taste.
If you want to be a true Gastronomist then you need to learn how to Sous Vide (https://www.polyscienceculinary.com/) . I will be honest it has taken me a bit more time than I thought to get consistent good food- but once you understand it, the results will surprise you.
A Sous Vide is a water circular that heats water to a precise temperature- the food needs to be vacuum sealed and the better that seal the better the finished product so make sure you have both before you put the Sous Vide to the back of the kitchen shelf.
Here is what I have learned- fish cooks like a dream, but I can usually nail fish so that really presented no challenge. Poached fruit is by far the best- you can't imagine how good when the Sous Vide tenderly cooks it. AMAZING!
The problem foods, I wanted to nail- a skinless boneless chicken breast- the blandest, hardest to cook protein and the boneless pork chop. Both of these are death to a so-so home cook and even tougher for a beginner.
Here is what I did-
BBQ Chicken Breast -
First I coated the breast in some good olive oil generously then I smoked it in the vacuum seal bag in another zip-lock bag with my smoking gun. I went with mesquite wood and coffee grounds for added depth of flavor. I seasoned with salt and pepper and waited for the smoke to do its job to mainly the oil and chicken.
I then sealed the bag and into the Sous Vide at 149 degrees Fahrenheit. for about 1 hour.
This results in a super tender white chicken breast.
My goal:
BBQ Chicken- Almost no one can make this without the chicken coming out too dry- I mean it is really hard to slow smoke the breast to be moist and that is exactly what the Sous Vide can NAIL.
I then shredded the chicken, topped with a bit of hardy slaw, BBQ sauce (my own recipe) and put it on mini biscuits for a chicken smoked slider.
I had a little of the smokey chicken left added some celery, onions, and mayo for a smoked chicken salad- I don't have a picture - I am afraid the tasters finished it before I could snap one.
Don't be afraid to use this chicken on salad, or bun or whatever, it won't disappoint you! If you want more smoke, I found that another 3 minutes in the bag with the gun knocked up the taste but my tasters were happy either way!
I was invited to do a Food and Wine show in Tenafly, NJ last weekend, it took a lot of emailing and calling and working to get all the details, but I finally made it and did my first live Demo.Now, I know you might have seen my Posts for the Giants of Generosity but what you might not know is the story of this one woman charity. Ms. Jane is a force for good and for the those without a voice. She started Giants of Generosity 8 years ago, inspired by Oprah, she decided to help those in need. She said she felt God called her to do this work, and I guess I believe her. Ms Jane laughs easy and cries easy. She wears her heart on her sleeve and like my Mom is fearless with an email list and will ask for anything. She asked for me and of course I said yes.
I know that this charity is small but that means you really see the results of all the work she does just like that. She helps accident victims, fire victims, people hurt, down on their luck or just with no place left to turn. She installed an elevator, redid a house, and just helps those who need help. Ms Jane does not ask for much in return- her joy for helping shows on her face and I was honored to be at her event.
I was really nervous to do the demo, I usually can knock out TV spots, radio spots and interviews like that! But 20 minutes with some food sounded tough. I think I did pretty good! She was laughing and the audience loved it. I signed autographs and took pictures and I have to say I think this was my first meet and greet. All the people were just so nice too! Thanks Ms. Jane for letting me share in your mission! Now, if you cant start your own charity and want to just help some nice people who have know where to turn here is a link. I promise every dollar you give will help Ms. Jane help others. WWW.GIANTSOFGENEROSITY.ORG
She let me make up some menu items and BAM! we were off! 
I am not going to talk much but let these pictures speak for me! 
