A Good Bite

It was a rainy evening in West Hollywood and I was at a pizza place with a group of friends… We were really there to hang out and escape the rain more than anything else.  When a deep dish pepperoni pizza was delivered to our table, I wasn’t particularly interested in having a whole slice to myself. But when a couple of my tablemates showed enthusiasm with such statements as, ‘Mmmmm,’ and ‘This is really good,’ I decided that I should probably try it to see what the fuss was about. Again, not wanting an entire piece to myself, I turned to my friend Erris and asked to try a bite from his plate. Our conversation went something like this:

Katrina: I want to try a bite of your pizza. Will you make me a good bite?

Erris: There is a bite on the fork right there. Go ahead and take it. 

Katrina: But I need you to make me a good bite. Like, a really good bite.

Erris: What in the world are you talking about? There is a bite right there on the fork.

Katrina: Erris. That is just a regular bite. I need you to make me a good bite.

Erris (in an increasingly annoyed tone): Seriously Katrina, I have no idea what you are talking about. You are not making any sense. Just take a bite. 

At this point, my roommate, who had been observing this whole exchange, decided to join the conversation and help me out. It was clear that Erris needed to be educated in the world of good bites and luckily, Jaime was there to intervene before he got completely frustrated with me and refused to let me taste the pizza at all.

A good bite is a carefully engineered forkful of whatever you may be eating. Good flavor combinations are important throughout a meal, but good bites are absolutely crucial when it comes to the first or last morsels of any dining experience.  These are the bites you are going to remember the entire meal by. Not having a good bite as your finishing mouthful is like a symphony ending on a wrong note: flat and anti-climactic.

Now you can see why a good bite of this deep dish pizza was extremely critical. I really only wanted one bite, so I had to take measures to ensure it was a good one. There are a few ways a good bite can be accomplished. In the case of the deep dish pizza, it needed to be a perfect balance of all of the elements of the pizza- just the right amount of crust, cheese, sauce and pepperoni. In other cases, a good bite can be an unadorned bit of your favorite part of the meal, say, one single, tender bite of filet mignon. Occasionally, an attempted last good bite doesn’t go as planned, and a second attempt must be made. But the solution to this is easy, simply try again!

After Jaime finished explaining all of this to Erris, he became much less put out by my request for a good bite. In fact, he now understood exactly what I meant and happily put one together for me. After tasting his creation, I came to one conclusion- it was a really good!

-Katrina

Late Night Munchies

With some Irish friends landing at LAX on a late night flight, I wanted to provide something yummy upon arrival for all to munch on, courtesy of Chez Jean. I chose to serve an assorted selection of cheeses, crackers, dips and chips, but I also wanted to offer my guests something more substantial, depending on their hunger levels. I decided some homemade crab cakes would be a good fit for all to enjoy, along with a fresh green arugula salad with shaved parmesan.

Asian Crab Cakes (makes 8 cakes)

Ingredients:

1 large Egg, beaten

2 slices Whole Grain Bread, crumbled

1 tbsp Light Mayonnaise

1 tbsp Fresh Ginger, grated

¾ c. Scallion, finely chopped

1 tsp Light Soy Sauce

12 oz. Lump Crabmeat

Salt and Pepper to taste

1 tbsp Sesame Oil

Method:

In a large bowl, combine egg and breadcrumbs until the bread absorbs the liquid. Add mayonnaise, ginger, scallion and soy sauce and stir to combine. Gently fold in crabmeat and season with salt and pepper. Working quickly, shape mixture into eight 2 inch patties and place on a plate, cover and chill for 15 minutes. In a large nonstick skillet over medium heat, cook crab cakes in sesame oil, turning once, until brown and crisp. Do not crowd the pan. Serve as an appetizer with a spicy remoulade, with a salad or on a sandwich.

Polished off with a couple of bottles of red wine, the crab cakes were devoured by all.

-Jean