Boar's Head Bacon Is Actually Good!

I wasn't expecting much from Boar's Head Bacon. It was thin, it was inexpensive, and it looked a lot like some of the big national brands: most of which i have found inedible. However, I do like their cold cuts, which really are a "cut above :)" the rest. I also like their hot dogs with the red label: I can't even eat a Hebrew National after them. So, I gave it a shot.

There is a lot of fat on the bacon: than in some of the "specialty" brands that I have eaten, such as Applegate Farms. This made cooking a little more difficult as I had to clean out the griddle more. Having said that, the bacon cooked clean and brown, and was quite tasty. It was crunchy, with a pleasant smoked flavor and plenty of meat on the pieces after cooking. Most of the excess fat (and maybe some water) cooked off and did not affect the final product that hit the plate. The bacon also much easier to find in stores: heck, its Boar's Head!

The family poll was clear: 4/4 thumbs up for Boar's Head. It is the current winner of the Male Martha commercial bacon award! Having said that, I still prefer Applegate Farms.

Spore Rocks

Ok.  Usually I keep the electronic side of my life out of Male Martha.  The glazed over look the lovely wife gives me as I talk about the latest Onkyo receiver is a clue.  The angry glares I get from the "other" mothers (and some fathers, too) as I talk about Grand Theft Auto IV as a beautifully crafted piece of fiction and commercial art: well you get the idea.  My fortysomething inner geek usually stays hidden.

But not about Spore.  Spore is the coolest game ever, even if it will give certain vice presidential candidates fits about the primacy of evolution (although I guess that person would point out the "intelligent design" inherent in the game :).  In Spore, you start with a one celled organism, choose whether you will be a herbivore or an omnivore, and eat, eat eat!  You get to add body parts, and eventually evolve to a land based being.  That's about as far as I got, but you also go onto being a tribe, the dominant beings on your planet, and then space travelers.  You can backtrack from your mistakes, and dying is painless (you don't lose points or anything).    Its pretty easy to play, and definitely cool.  You can track your evolutionary progress (see my widget, above), and its fun to eat your friends!   I also like that its both PC and MAC compatible, allowing me to play it on my computer without the kids needing it to play Madden or something.  

Even those of you who don't like games should strongly consider this game for yourselves.  

Yukon Gold Hash Brown Potatoes!

Yesterday was rainy and gross. What was supposed to be a weekend at the beach became steak night. Not much to say about steak: other than its a lot harder to do in an apartment in Manhattan than a grill on Fire Island. Maybe next time I'll talk about oven grilling steaks in an apartment without the need to call the Fire Department. But for now, for my faux Luger's evening, I wanted to talk about my potatoes. You can make these too: all it takes is a cast iron pan and an oven. I particularly like Yukon Gold Potatoes, but any "new" potato will work. Heck, even Idaho style potatoes will work although they are a bit starchy for my taste.

EQUIPMENT YOU WILL NEED

Cast iron skillet and aluminum foil to cover it.
oven and stove top

INGREDIENTS

3 pounds Yukon Gold potatoes, cut intro 1/2 inch pieces with skins on
one large onion, diced
teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
3 cloves garlic, sliced thin
1/2 teaspoon granulated garlic
3 tablespoon of olive oil (don't skimp as this dish is not healthy no matter what you do). An extra tablespoon is a good idea to have around

Preheat the oven to 500 degrees. Place the potatoes in a pan and start cooking while you prepare the onions. Brown the onion on the stove top in half the oil. Part of the way through, add the garlic. Add the rest of the oil, and the potatoes. Stir around, all on medium high heat. Cover the pan with tinfoil and transfer to the oven. Cook for about 30 minutes and then uncover and stir around again. Test one piece of potato for doneness. You can add another tablespoon of oil at this time, too (yes, i know, thats 4 tablespoons). When brown and soft, the potatoes are ready. Serve immediately.