Category: San Luis Obispo

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blue corn tortilla soup with pheasant

Laura loves Tortilla Soup

My bride of nearly 40 years loves Tortilla Soup and I make it for her whenever the mood strikes and her diet will allow it. Jenny Craig makes a Tortilla Soup… but, well, it isn’t the same.

I like to make this soup a little different every time I make it from the spices to the meats. This time I seared and shredded a pound of pheasant breasts. You can buy some at Whole Foods or on-line directly at Pheasantfordinner. I also love a wide variety of vegetables, corn, rice,  fire roasted peppers and my own dried Jalapenos! As for spices, you want it to have a bit of a tang, so I’ll use a blend of curry spices, or just turmeric and chili powder… but it depends.

My favorite Mexican Food Restaurant in Los Angeles is  El Cholo’s  where they serve many wonderful things made of Blue Corn … so I add some Blue Corn Tortillas for fun!

A nice diversion for any reason!

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Tinus Oelofse and the perfect hunting knife

My Custom Hunting Knife made by Tinus Oelofse

Before I go any farther, let me say that I have never given kudos to custom hunting knife makers. There are many reasons, but let me just say that a knife shouldn’t be no more dangerous for you to use than to look at. I also think a lot of knife makers produce products for the Lilliputian market rather than for Gulliver and although the materials are sometimes glitzy they don’t wear well, can’t hold an edge or too hard to sharpen.

This past weekend we were in Las Vegas attending the  Safari international Convention.  I visited every booth and came away with two items: a knife I bid on in an auction and a custom hunting knife by  Tinus Oelofse  that I bought from him directly. I consider Tinus’s knife worth the trip alone.

Although Tinus makes knives utilizing a variety of materials, I prefer the Swedish Steel referred to as AEB-L he used in mine. Some of my chef knives are made of this wonderful material, here’s how a friend describes it:

” AEB-L (also called 13C26 ) steel was designed for razors, which need corrosion resistance, high hardness and very acute edges. Once you try a knife that is made with AEB-L you will see why it is coveted by knife enthusiasts and professionals. The knife will take a very keen edge just like the best carbon steels yet you don’t have to worry about rusting. You will also find much better sharpening properties since AEB-L is less prone to produce wire edges that are so common when you sharpen most high end Japanese kitchen knives. “

Although a young knife manufacturer, Tinus has a good understanding of marketing and presentation.

Even the final presentation was a work of art!

This will be one of the knives I will be taking on my next hunting trip…. and many more after.

BTW, Tinus Oelofse will be at the  Blade Show  ( everything from hunting to kitchen knives) in Atlanta June 8th -10th , 2012.

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amarula bread pudding with gingerbread and barenjager brandy sauce

CLICK on the above picture for my general bread pudding recipe... but to see how this one is made, you must watch the movie below!

My daughter Karen reported on a wonderful gingerbread bread pudding made by Emeril in his legendary restaurant Delmonico’s in New Orleans. From Karen’s ‘super taster’ experienced palate and from the pictures, I had a fairly good idea on how it was made.

I confess that I sometimes eat bread pudding as a meal replacement so I really didn’t want to make my bread pudding with 100% gingerbread… especially my very flavorful gingery gingerbread. So, I cubed my gingerbread and added it as part of the total composition of breads ( the others being: croissants, sour dough bread and apple cinnamon muffins). I also reduced the cream slightly and added a cup of Amarula… which was wonderful. I made a sauce of Barenjager (it’s natural sweetness adds a lot to a sauce) and brandy!

BTW this is not a great video… but hopefully it gives you an idea

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zryh0d0Buf8[/youtube]

Bon Appetite!