Stale Blogs

I just don't understand why people let their blogs get stale. Look at me. It's been quite a long time since I've made a post.

Oh no, I've got to run. I have a meeting in 20 minutes.

I'll catch up later......

It doesn’t need to be fancy. It just needs to be good.

Quite often I’m told that I am too “fufu”, fancy, fussy or uncompromising, in particular, when it comes to my cooking. At the same time, I’m told quite often that the meals I produce are great, “keepers” or at least good. The latter is true even when the main ingredient is something that the taster doesn’t think he or she likes.

Let’s use scallops as an example. In one case, I was developing a party menu for my friend, Ronnie. Ronnie is an oneophile with quite a collection. His entertainment objective for this party was to couple foods with the wines he wanted to showcase.

During the weeks prior to the event, we hashed over menu suggestions, and I produced various samples. We then paired the food samples with the wine samples. Through a process of elimination, we narrowed the selection for Ronnie’s party, with one exception - the appetizer.

I knew the particular wine he wanted to serve with the first course would pair excellently with scallops. Yet, when I mentioned scallops, Ronnie turned up his nose. No way. “No way am I going to serve scallops at my party,” he said.

The next weekend presented an opportunity for us to sample more appetizers. As you just guessed, I served scallops. The freshest scallops I could find. Nothing frozen. Straight from my fishmonger. Sautéed in olive oil and seasoned with sea salt, freshly cracked pepper and Moto-Rub #1. Plated on a bed of minted pea puree and a freshly fried potato chip. Not my recipe, just my cooking and fresh ingredients. Dr. Ronnie thought it was fantastic, a “keeper”, one for the menu.

Sounds fancy. An oneophile, food and wine pairing, etc. It really isn’t. It’s a matter of the basic rule of fresh ingredients when cooking. Take the same ingredient out of a formal dinner setting and do something similar.

Cindy and I invited Janie and Gary to spend an afternoon at our home. We intended to throw a few items on the grill and “pick” at heavy hors d’oeuvres while swimming, visiting and playing with the kids.

The morning of their visit, Cindy and I decided to make some shrimp cocktail. I couldn’t help myself while at the fishmonger’s – I saw great looking scallops, so I took it upon myself to pick up a few (1 pound). (I found some great looking lump crabmeat as well.) While making the shrimp, I threw a fry pan on the cook top, poured some olive oil into it, and seasoned the fresh scallops with sea salt, freshly cracked pepper and Moto-Rub #1. I seared the scallops. They were finished when Janie walked into the kitchen. Another Ronnie experience! Janie did not like scallops until she tried mine. I don’t attribute this to my cooking; rather, I attribute it to the fresh ingredient rule. Nothing can be less fancy than throwing some fresh scallops into a fry pan.

The rule can be applied to all foods. Buy the ingredients that make things good - ground chuck versus ground beef. When buying steaks, pick a grade that is USDA Choice or Prime rather than Select. Use fresh rather than frozen when you can. Why used boxed potatoes when fresh are available? Throw the margarine away and only buy butter.

Now both Ronnie and Janie enjoy good scallops. They don’t have to be fancy. They just have to be good.

What do you say?

Home

Rain greeted this morning. Time to get back to my family. I decided to have another cup of coffee; the rain waned. It finally stopped.

I departed around 1030 hrs, and thought that I would ride into Kerrville for brunch and a phone call home - no cell signal at the River Inn Resort.

After a short ride along Highway 39, I said goodbye to Hunt and searched for a place to stop. Billy Gene's Restaurant looked good to me. After a short phone call home, I was seated on the back porch overlooking the Guadalupe River and drinking an iced tea. With a five - six hour ride ahead, I considered eating something light. However, the chicken fried steak listed as the first menu item under "Hill Country Specialties" caught my eye, and I ordered it. It was great along with the garden salad and service.

Forty-five minutes later, and I was on the way home. Today was a day to cover distance as quickly and safely as possible. I-10 to Boerne where I filled the tank. Highway 46 around San Antonio. It was hot. A stop for some Gatorade in New Braunfels (gee, the sky is very, very dark to the East). Back on the bike toward Seguin. Hmm, should I put on some rain gear? Too late. A gust of wind and a Texas sized downpour. I was soaked. I was cool. Keep going.

I-10 East and the rain stopped. Reflecting on why I didn't stop to don my rain gear, I conluded the following:

1. There was not a safe place to stop.
2. I was lazy.
3. I was too hot to wear clothing that would not breath.
4. I was lazy.
5. I didn't want to take the time so that I could get home faster.
6. I was lazy.
7. I didn't want to dig in my bags for the rain gear.
8. I was lazy.

The correct answers are 2, 3, 4, 6, & 8. Also, I decided to order Frogg Toggs and update my load plan as corrective action.

After one more downpour, I arrived in Houston ahead of the evening rush. Good deal!

Home safe and sound, with my family, at last.

M.

11 Sep 05 - Day 4

Hunt, Texas - 0800. The office at the River Inn Resort is now open. I am able to keep my room for one more night, and I've decided to stay.

Al has been on the road since 3 September, and he has to be home tonight.

The plan: Ride to Utopia, eat breakfast at the Lost Maples Cafe, loop around to Bandara at which point Al heads East, and I turn to the West for some additional Hill Country riding.

IAW our plan, we rode South on Texas 39. The sky was getting dark; we were going to get wet. How wet, I did not know. The sprinkling began. Not too bad - let's keep going. The rain stopped. It stopped for a moment, and then it was back. This time the drops were larger and heavier. On we continued.

Day 3 - BBQ Anyone?

Cooper's BBQ in Llano is perhaps the more well known pit in the city; however the more exclusive Laird's Bar-B-Q has, in this Motochef's opinion, much better food. Al and I are now headed to Lairds.

We said goodbye to the Frio Pecan Farm and proceeded North out of Leakey on Ranch Road 336. Cut East on Texas 41 and then Southeast on 1340 into Hunt. Here is where we begin the first of many crossings of the Guadalupe river. After a quick stop at the Hunt Store, we marched North to Llano on Texas 39 to 783 to 87 to 152 and finally 16.

A lunch of brisket, links, beans and potato salad sated us. The meat was redolent and the beans and salad were a delightful savory.

After lunch, we moved South on 16 to Fredericksburg for fuel. Then on to Kerrville for groceries. The River Inn Resort was our final destination today, and we would grill our dinner. Al picked inch and one-half thick butterfly cut pork chops from the meat counter. Long grain and wild rice as well as salad fixings were pulled from the HEB shelves for pleasure.

20 miles later we pulled got off of the bikes for the day. Mixologist Al prepared refreshments while I scouted a grill. The River Inn Resort bustled with families swimming and cooking. We were not going to eat at the first seating. All of the grills were in use. No problem, we would enjoy the view of the Guadalupe River and the tall bluff on its opposite bank. No problem - until the unexpected downpour and companion storm arrived at our party.

An hour later we were grilling our main course. It was good.

Can You Say Plan B? Day 2

The sun set as I arrived at the Austin City limits yesterday. Found a motel about 5 miles from Lone Star Cycles and settled in for the night. Dana, Al and I coordinated a potential meeting spot - Sweetwater, TX. Well, at least Al and I coordinated.

The two departed Houston last Saturday, 3 September, for Santa Fe, NM. We had visions of a rendezvous at Sipapu. At the last minute, Dana thought it would be a great idea to leave his bike in NM and fly back to Houston. Then, on a whim, he could hop a flight back to and be on his bike in great riding country, in a matter of hours. The original "fly and ride" idea was generated and perfected Randy Masters (a Sipapu Veteran) - see http://www.coffeehaus2.blogspot.com/. Meanwhile, Al was left to ride the return segments by his lonesome.

Lone Star Cycles worked my bike into their busy schedule. Two new Metzlers. Cost is not a factor here (I'm stuck on the road :)). However, it was 1400 before I was off and running. No way to get to Seetwater and have a comfortable ride. Time to do that coordination thing with Al.

After some discussion, we decided to meet at the Frio Pecan Farm in Leakey, TX. After reserving a cabin, I was Westbound and made it into Leakey by 1730. Early enough to hit the local grocer and grab a couple of hand-cut ribeye steaks we would grill later.

Al made it to the cabin after dark and a 700+ mile day. Grilled steak and good company set the stage for a couple of days of Hill Country riding.

Day 1, Continued

At 1442 hrs I pulled out of my driveway. Cindy asked me if I checked my tires. I told her I would on my first stop. I always do a tire check before I ride.

I made it through Houston ahead of the evening rush, and pulled in fornt of Royers Round Top Cafe at 1700. I eased the bike back into a spot directly in front of the establishment. While putting down the kick-stand, I slid on some gravel and dropped her onto her side (gently). The good news is that I righted her quickly. Anytime a BMW is on her side, a small amount of engine oil accumulates around the spark plug, and when the bike is started, a huge plume of smoke is emitted from the exhaust. The bad news is that I parked the bike with the exhaust aimed at Royers front door.

After a few deep breaths, I entered the restaurant and ordered an iced tea and a menu. It all looked good, but I settled on an appetizer of grilled quail followed by a 10 ounce cut of beef tenderloin cooked perfectly rare. Two good choices. Forget about chasing hamburgers.

While paying for my meal, I mentioned to the cashier that she would see a bunch of smoke coming from my bike. She told me not to worry about it, so I didn't.

As I approached my bike, I noticed a spot on my rear tire. Upon closer examination, I realized that not only did I have a bald spot on the tire, steel cord was exposed and fraying. Not good. I needed a new tire, and I was running out of daylight. A quick sort through the decision making process and I new San Marcos was out of the question. The real questions were 1. where to find a tire and 2. could I find a spot to get off of the road before dark? In an instant, I decided to go to Lone Start Cycles (BMW & Triumph) in Austin. Off to the races....

...but before I close this post... I did wait until a few ladies who were heading to the cafe entered the building and closed the door before I made contact with the starter. Now off to the races in a cloud of blue smoke....

Day 1

My wonderful wife, Cindy, encouraged me to get going.

I said goodbye to the "big guys", Zach and Pete, last night, and to Steven and Cole this morning. However, I got a late start today. In fact, I'm not completely packed.


If I ever actually leave, I'll head to Royers Round Top Cafe in Round Top, TX for a test drive of their kitchen. Then, off to San Marcos to for a short stop.

What will tomorrow bring? Will I make it to Round Top and San Marcos today? Stay tuned for up to the minute posts (as up to the minute as my next internet connection).....