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There is just something about pretzels and chocolate…. Chocolate Pretzels Tart Makes one 10 inch tart For the crust half a bag or 8 ounces pretzels 1/4 or cup more of room temperature unsalted butter 1 cup 10x sugar 1 teaspoon sea salt Place the pretzels in a large bowl and crush with another smaller [...]
Cracked Mustard Vinaigrette 1/3 cup white vinegar 2/3 cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil 1 1/2 tablespoons cracked mustard 1 large shallot, diced Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper Place all ingredients in a medium mixing bowl and incorporate all ingredients using a whip, set aside. Salad Serves Four 1 Asian pear 1/2 cup Gorgonzola, [...]
Part food photography, part craving oysters. On my day off I set aside most of my day to practice shooting food pics for my blog. Nothing relaxes me more, it’s the challenge of setting my camera, getting the lighting right and then working on my composition. As you can tell I like to get in real [...]
Sometimes I like to make it simple, a little pasta, fresh artichoke, mushrooms, garlic and some fresh herbs. Artichokes are probably my favorite non starchy vegetable. As a child my Mother would purchase an artichoke for myself and one for each of my eight brothers and sisters. She would have me trim them and then simmer in lemon and salted [...]
We are so busy at Mckendricks during the holidays I don’t have much time to take my camera out. Towards the end of the holidays I like to rent a lens from Aperturent.com because with the holiday break I get an extra week of rental. I am looking to purchase a new lens and can’t decide which one to purchase [...]
My Grandmother is the sweetest person I have ever met. As a child she would help me with my pronunciation and spelling by working with me with her flash cards. She was always smiling and most of the time doing what she loved, cooking. I came across my mothers and grandmothers recipe collection while visiting [...]
One of the most difficulties with food photography is the lighting. Once you learn the the functions of your camera and composition you have to learn how to light your subject. I believe that the type and direction of your light determines the quality of your picture. I spend many hours every week trying to increase [...]
Whenever I purchase lamb racks for grilled lamb chops I always prefer to buy the Australian Lamb. Australian lamb has a less gamy flavor and a lot larger loin than the New Zealand or Colorado lamb. If you want to prepare lamb chops for a cocktail party you will need to use the New Zealand lamb rack [...]
I had the chance a couple of months ago to visit my family up north. Most of them and their families live in New Jersey except for 3 of my brothers. Kenny lives in Oregon, Paul in Atlanta and Tony in Connecticut. Whenever I return to Jersey, as I call it, I must take time to get to work and practice with my camera. [...]
I have an confession to make: ” This Yankee can’t make biscuits!” For the past couple of weeks, I have been searching for the best biscuit recipe. I know, I’m a chef and have lived in the south for 20 some odd years and I don’t know how to make biscuits. I was looking for the southern type [...]
This is the end of the season for heirloom tomatoes, I will miss them dearly! I grew up with Jersey tomatoes and found that heirloom tomatoes are equal in flavor with the Jersey tomato. Heirloom tomatoes are found at local Farmers Markets and some times at local stores! When preparing the soup I try to save [...]
As you should know by now Red Snapper is one of my favorite fish. This light and delicate fish is best served simple, a little butter, salt and pepper and fresh lemon juice. Louisiana Sauce 4 tablespoons olive oil 16 slices Andouille sausage 3 tablespoons red pepper, julienne 3 tablespoons green pepper, julienne 3 tablespoons red onion, [...]
Just in time for the fourth I had a little extra time to put out this blog post. I have a Thai friend who lives in Birmingham, Al that developed this recipe for Cool Ginger Cucumber Salad for the Copper Grill’s seared tuna appetizer. I was off to the farmers market to gather the ingredients for the dish [...]
I spend alot of my off time from work searching for great recipes. I rarely go to bed on time and stay up late reading about food or photography or even food photography. With my new found friend, Pinterest, I’ve been able to collect a large amount of recipes on my boards including recipes for donuts. This is one of [...]
Early Thursday took a drive down 30 A towards Grayson Beach for a little exploring. The sun was perfect but some heavy clouds rolled in. My Wife, Laura My wife Laura and I spent an evening at the Boat House in the Destin Harbor. We chowed on some fresh oysters, crab legs and cold beer! [...]
The last time I summoned the sheer chutzpah to propose a list of metro Atlanta’s top 50 restaurants, the year was 2004. Back then many of the best restaurants were also the most ambitious ones. Scouting out the talented chefs who used top-tier ingredients meant going to a lot of places with tablecloths and [...]
I “LOVE” carrots. Back in the days when I was apprenticing under Chef Tony Brunner at Brunner’s Landmark in Jersey he would make these wonderful roasted carrots with coriander. The aroma of the coriander toasting in the hot pan and the caramelization of the carrots pair very well with the Oven roasted Red Snapper. Coriander Roasted Organic [...]
Where have I been! Well, I’ve been away for a while and would like to explain where I have been since you last heard from me. There have been no posts from my blog in well, months, and maybe ages and I apologize! When starting this post I had to refresh myself on the updates on WordPress and [...]
We at Mckendricks are so lucky to have such a fine kitchen and such a great staff. I love to practice taking pictures in the kitchen and today I pulled out a lens that I normally do not use. I thought my Canon EF 50mmf1.4 was only for close shots but I have recently read that it [...]
I am so sorry it has taken me so long to write a post! I have been so busy with my photography that I have not had time to sit and concentrate on writing a post. After two years I finished my first photography class, photography 101, at Showcase School of Photography last week. The class was awesome and [...]
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I wanted to do some barbecue this weekend and was thing about trying something different. I needed something light for dinner and decided on cold water lobster tails. These tails are the best money can buy. They are South African cold water lobster tails that are sweet, tender and delicious barbecued and dipped in drawn butter with the addition of cilantro. South African lobsters are [...]
Seems like these days when I need a fix for fried foods I tempura them. Tempura is a thin batter that is very crisp on the outside and moist on the inside. There are many different types of tempura but this one has suited my needs for years. I have tried to tempura many items, [...]
Every summer my wife and I pack up the dogs, Blondie, Muffin and Jolie and head off to Payne Farm and Produce to pick all the fresh blueberries we can handle. We spend the next couple of days making jams, jellies and of course our favorite blueberries and cream gelato. The layers of blueberry sorbet and vanilla bean gelato [...]
I really only did this blog post because I have to keep practicing photography not because I like eating tenderloin . I was stumped on how to write this blog post because I really do not care for beef tenderloin and after I finshed these pictures my wife fed on this dish for [...]
I had to do something with this leftover roast beef tenderloin I made and since my wife loved it so much and I did not, I thought I would buy some good crusty white bread from the market along with some heirloom tomatoes. I started by making a Dijon Aioli 2 [...]
I knew I had to have an accompaniment with my beef tenderloin and with all the different varieties of heirloom tomatoes around, why not cook them my favorite way? A few of these heirloom tomatoes are from my garden and some from my sous chef Chuck Taylor. Pick out some small or medium heirloom tomatoes. [...]
I haven’t been to the Sandy Springs Farmers Market in a couple of weeks so I decided that on the way to work I would stop by to see all the great vendors. The sun was out and getting hot and I appreciate the owners and vendors responsible for bringing the market to us every Saturday. The hours are from 8:00 til 12:00 and [...]
I really do not care for chicken livers but being raised with nine brothers and sisters my mother would find a way to fit sauteed chicken livers into our meals at least every couple of weeks. With my mother and father looking over my shoulder I would endure the flavor of the livers until I [...]
I was invited by Richard Levine with Athena Farms to visit the growing areas and farmers in Salinas, California. To a chef this is probably one of the most exciting adventures one can go on. To be able to see the area where most of the country’s vegetables are grown is an amazing thing. We started off the first morning sipping coffee in front of the hotel waiting [...]
Every once in a while I get a great craving for a simple, lean, oven roasted pork loin and while walking through the market the other day I saw these fabulous pork loins from Thompson Ranch and decided to take one home for dinner. Thompson Ranch is located in Dixie, Ga. and provides fresh, naturally grown, environmentally friendly, [...]
Sweet and Sour Balsamic BBQ Ribs Grilled Georgia Corn with Pesto Butter & Lemon Thyme Grilled Yukon Gold Potatoes I really love to barbecue and over the years I have come up with this cooking method for ribs. Some people do not simmer their ribs first but I think it is necessary to use some kind of moist [...]
I am always fascinated by things that rise in the oven and wanting to surprise my wife with dinner and dessert for our anniversary I decided to look through some old recipes and came across this recipe for souffle. Long ago, I happened to get this recipe from a French chef who opened 103 West in [...]
I love this time of year when morels and ramps are in season and I am waiting for the fiddlehead ferns become available. Wild ramps have a very distinct and strong garlic/leek flavor and that is why I choose them for this dish. Wild ramps and morels grow well in the upper northwest [...]
I have been seeing a lot of these colorful tiny little peppers in the markets lately and decided to see what kind of dish I could make. Most often then not we like to enyoy some kind of cured meats and cheese with wine in the afternoon and before our Sunday dinner. [...]
During the summer months my Mothers basil would grow like weeds. We always had tons of fresh basil and my mother would make jars and jars of fresh pesto. She would take the time to teach me how to pinch the scented little buds off the top of the plants in order to make [...]
Juniper, Lemon and Sea Salt Cured Salmon I have been doing a lot of research on food photography and I thought I would try to use some of my new found knowledge with a post on gravlox. I picked gravlox for two reasons, one because I used a Tasmanian Salmon that I purchased from Honolulu Seafood company [...]
Roast chicken is one of the easiest and most often cooked dinner entrée’s in our household and over the years I have simplified and tested so many different methods to try to get that perfectly roasted chicken. The idea is to get the skin as crispy and salty as you can while keeping the center meat [...]
It all began back in the early 1990′s while working for Pano as chef at the old Fish Market in Lenox Square and waiting for the Atlanta Fish Market to open. The area where the Atlanta Fish Market was to be built was not ready for building yet and Pano asked me to apply for [...]
Channel 11 called Susan a couple of weeks ago and wanted to tape a segment on a recipe from our kitchen. I really don’t like being on television or filming live but considering that this was Channel 11 I thought that I should do a simple recipe for them. After talking with Susan we set up a date [...]
For the last couple of weeks I have been taking a close look at each and every recipe on our dessert menu including our honey walnut bread which is probably our signature bread. You see, after the (abrupt) departure of our pastry chef I made an executive decision and took on the day to day responsibilities of the pastry chef myself. Playing [...]
Had a chance to take the camera out while held up with the storm. Hope everyone is safe!
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Mckendrick’s steak house loves celebrating the return of fresh Florida stone crab claws. As this years season arrives with good news that the Deep-water Horizon oil spill will not effect the catch. Stone crab claws are truly one of my favorite seafood dishes. I love shrimp, lobster, blue crabs and king crab but there is something about stone crabs. [...]
* * Craig Claiborne once said “Cooking is like child’s play and adult joy. And cooking done with care is an act of love”. * When the fall weather arrives our source of inspiration changes. There is a change from the light dishes of summer to the more elegant home cooked meals. Hearty dishes of slow braised fatty cuts [...]
Making the pasta dough. 1. On a hard surface place 2 1/4 cups of all-purpose flour. 2. Make a well in the center and add 3 whole eggs. No need to add salt because you will salt the cooking water. 3. Mix slowly with a fork, using your other hand to keep the pile together. 4. Add [...]
My first memory of enjoying a shrimp cocktail was when I was at the beginning of my career in the restaurant industry. My first position was working the dish station at Brunner’s Landmark located in Hunterdon County, New Jersey. Brunner’s Landmark was a large farm house over looking the gleaming waters of the Spruce Run Reservoir. The large farm [...]
I honestly loved taking the pictures and writing this post. Writing a post is much easier when you can prepare something that you love so much and you enjoy being able to take pictures and write about it. I love caramel, butter, cream and bacon. Since working with bacon from Eden Farms my relationship with [...]
** Nothing beats your local farmers market for the freshest ingredients! ** Well it’s off to the Sandy Springs Farmers Market. I promised my wife I would cook something different for dinner this weekend and yes, I always do the cooking. She didn’t want to go out for dinner so I thought the next best thing was for me to [...]
