Culinary Research

Vinny's daily postings will be down for a few days.  More culinary research is planned.

Feeling the heat

     It's been a hot summer here.  Once again yesterday we were sweltering in the nineties with commensurate humidity.  So what better time to begin reading a book entitled Hot Sauce! ?  In the introduction it touts all the virtues of the flame inducing condiment that we all have a love/hate relationship with.

     Author Jennifer Trainer Thompson, the proclaimed "Queen of Hot" by the Associated Press, asserts that hot sauces are incredibly good for us, speeding up metabolism, aiding digestion, and preventing blood clots.  She also states that they are a good source of potassium and are dense in Vitamins A, B, C and E, flavonoids, and iron, magnesium, niacin, riboflavin and thiamin.  In pre-Columbian times, Native Americans used chiles to help with childbirth, coughs, ear infections and sore throats.  Chiles were so precious in Peru that pods were exchanged as currency as late at the 1950s.

     And she goes on to say, "Hot sauces also feel good.  Like sex and running marathons, chiles can induce a radiant sense of well being.  the source of this physiological reaction is the capsaicin, a chemical produced at the stem end of the chile's placenta.  As capsaisin travels from the chile's inner sanctum to your own, it triggers a series of chemical events: First the chemical excites the pain-detecting nerves in your mouth, nose, and throat; thus awakened, they dispatch a pain messenger to the brain.  The brain, in turn, releases natural painkillers called endorphins, which block the burning attack and trigger a rush of pleasurable relief."

     She concludes her introduction with these words, "Hot sauces have a devoted following.  They make you laugh.  They are great-tasting and good for you.  They're versatile and a bit devilish.  A dramatic culinary gesture, they are soulful, jazzy, and addictive.


     I can't wait to read more!

Take me out to the ballgame

     Among the multi-million dollar structures in the South Philadelphia Sports Complex lies Citizens Bank Park.  It is so named due to a $95 million dollar 25 year naming rights contract with the bank of the same moniker.  The 43,651 seat stadium that opened on April 3, 2004, sometimes called The Little Mudhole, has a playing field 30 feet below street level that is constructed of natural grass and dirt.  The 2008 World Champion Philadelphia Phillies call the stadium home.  But that's not what makes it remarkable.

     The stadium is a veritable smorgasbord of all foods Philly that just so happens to have a sports entertainment attraction at its hub.  Walking along Ashburn Alley, named for Hall of Fame center fielder, Richie Ashburn who played on the team from 1948 to 1959, there are no fewer than 6 food venues.  On the Terrace level you can purchase, at exorbitant prices mind you, cheese steaks, hoagies, sausage sandwiches, pizza,  crab fries, and yes, all manner of barbecued meats, including an entire smoked turkey leg.

     Beneath the jumbotron scoreboard in center field there is Harry the K's Bar & Grille where you can sit down for a pregame meal and enjoy a local favorite, The Schmitter, named after 3rd baseman, Mike Schmidt.  For those seeking to impress a business associate there are the Diamond and Hall of Fame Clubs on the 200 level with exclusive admittance to air conditioned box seats and upscale food options as well as a walk along a museum collection of memorabilia.  There is also the High and Inside Pub behind home plate on the Terrace level for the casual patron.  An outside entrance at the third base gate provides libations at McFadden's Bar & Grille for those wishing a drink before braving the traffic home on the Schuylkill Expressway.

     In addition to all the caloric options at the stadium, it should also be noted that the management is cooperating with the EPA's Green Power Partnership, purchasing 2 million KWh of renewable green energy to operate the stadium.  And all glass, cardboard and plastics used during the games are recycled, as is frying oil, which is converted into bio-diesel.

     One could attend a ball game at "The Bank" and never see the game!

It's Cool in the Kitchen

     With the temperature outside back up into the upper nineties once again, the last thing I want to do is spend time in a hot kitchen preparing dinner.  So to keep things cool while still serving a healthy and economical meal I turned to a classic Middle East salad, tabouleh.
     It is composed mainly of Bulgur wheat, a whole grain, that provides plenty of fiber, and has a sweet, nutty taste.  And to that base I added some of the herbs growing on the back porch, namely parsley and mint.  And of course I included about a dozen of my cherry tomatoes that were halved.  Other ingredients can include diced cucumber, bell pepper and onion either from the garden or from the mega mart nearby.  An added dash of flavor comes from a combination of fresh lemon juice and olive oil (a Vinny Garette, if you will). 

     After mixing everything together I simply put the salad bowl in the refrigerator for the afternoon and a minute before dinner I sprinkled some crumbled Feta cheese on top and placed it on the table.  And to compliment the salad I added some grilled shrimp that were seasoned with tarragon.

     Click on the recipe to learn more.

Meals on Wheels

     Whenever there is a prolonged emergency providing nourishment for the personnel on the scene can be a problem.  In our region we are privileged to have that concern handled by a dedicated group of volunteers who respond 24 hours a day with food and drink. 

     The North Penn Goodwill Service was established in 1949 to go to the scene of an emergency, be it a fire, natural disaster, police incident or community event, as they have done faithfully for over 60 years.  Their first piece of mobile equipment was a "semi-retired" 1934 school bus donated by Hagey's Bus Service.  It was outfitted with used equipment for preparing meals and responded to the first call on July 15, 1949 before the organization had acquired license plates for it.  To avoid any potential legal problems it was driven to the scene by Souderton Police Chief Paul Hunsberger.

     As time went on and the need continued to grow used transit buses from North Carolina and Cincinnati were purchased and placed into service to respond to the call from wherever it may come.  In 1972 the call for help came from Pottstown in the aftermath of Hurricane Agnes and the NPGS was there 24 hours a day for ten straight days.

     The "Coffee Wagon" volunteers rely on donations from area companies to stock their freezers, but there was a time when they also benefited from contributions from the state game wardens who would drop off recent road kills.  On a cold winter night at a building fire it was a treat to warm up with some venison stew!  Or on a summer afternoon to chow down on a "Bambi burger."  Unfortunately those meals are no longer on the menu.

     Currently the rolling stock at Station 41 is composed of modern step vans that provide comfortable working conditions for the cooks and maneuverability for the drivers.  Included among their vehicles is a relief wagon that is equipped with sanitary disposal facilities as well as a warming station.

     Last weekend the Goodwill Service served Hatfield hot dogs and Wawa juice drinks at the annual 5th Fire District's Water Battle in Souderton.

Make Herr's Yours

     Last week I returned to the Herr's potato chip factory in Nottingham, PA for a visit.  It is an impressive operation that had a very inauspicious beginning.  The year was 1946 and young James Herr purchased the Verna's Potato Chips company with $1,750 of borrowed money.  That money gave Jim the rights to the business along with 2 iron kettles, a potato slicer and peeler and a '38 Dodge panel truck.  He began cooking and selling potato chips from a vacated tobacco shed on the family farm in Lancaster.  It took him 3 years to pay off the loan and in 1949 he was able to rent a larger baking facility in West Willow.  But in 1951 a fire destroyed the plant.  Wondering  if he should just give up or try again, Jim and his wife, Mim, decided to rebuild on a larger 37 acre property they had purchased.  It was the correct decision.

     From 3 sales routes to Lancaster, West Chester and Coatesville, the business continued to grow to over 500 sales routes to 11 states from 23 warehouse locations and distribution to several foreign countries.

     And as the years passed the Herr family added new products beginning in 1958 when they first introduced barbeque seasoned chips.  The Herr's name is currently on a variety of different snack items including popcorn, cheese curls, pretzels, corn and tortilla chips, and onion rings.

     Being ecologically mindful they also maintain a 1,000 acre farm adjacent to the manufacturing plant where waste water is used to grow crops and potato peelings and unusable food products are mixed with feed and fed to the herd of Angus steer on the farm.

     Herr's continues to experiment with new products and I brought some home to try.  Gee, it looks like families could have a complete picnic right out of the bag without ever having to light up the grill!

Love Apples

     About now I'm up to my ears in tomatoes.  My three thriving plants are currently producing over 50 ripe fruits daily.  (Remember-tomatoes are a fruit and not a vegetable.  See my post on February 6 "Fruit or Vegetable?)  But have you ever heard them referred to as "Love Apples?"  That's what my Father always called them and I never knew why until just recently when I did some tomato history research.

     The tomato, Lycopersicon esculentum, is native to South and Central America and one of the crops discovered by Cortez when he toured Montezuma's gardens.  Intrigued by the golden orbs (yes, they were probably yellow tomatoes) Cortez transported some seeds back to Europe where they were planted and tomatoes were grown there as ornamental curiosities, but not eaten.  As a member of the Deadly Nightshade family they were erroneously thought to be poisonous.  And there is some truth to that since the leaves are, in fact, deadly.

     Up until the end of the 18th Century physicians warned against eating tomatoes, fearing they caused serious and possibly fatal consequences like appendicitis and stomach cancer.  But that concern was put to rest when in 1820 Colonel Robert Gibbon Johnson of Salem, NJ stood on the steps of the courthouse there in the middle of town and consumed an entire basket of tomatoes without suffering any ill effects, much to the amazement of the crowd standing by.  Announcing his intention in advance he drew a large audience of over 2,000 on-lookers who were certain he would surely die, which he did not.  It was at that point in history that the tomato was once and for all deemed safe to eat.

     But perhaps the single most influential advocate of the tomato was Joseph Campbell, who in 1897, created condensed tomato soup and sold it in cans to the public.  And in so doing endeared the tomato to the world.  The rest, as they say, is history.

     But back to my original question...How did the tomato come to be nick named the "love apple?"  You have to trace that moniker back to the 16th Century when tomatoes grown in North Africa were shipped to Italy where they were called, "pomo dei Mori" or "apples of the Moors."  But by the time they arrived in France that term had become transliterated into French as "pomme d'amour" or as we call them today, "love apples."  Now some would claim that it was the French who considered tomatoes to have aphrodisiac powers, hence the name "love apple."  But then again they also say the same about oysters and mushrooms, too.