NFL Week Thirteen Pick 'Em/Why Do You Fire a Coach?

Last week I went 8-8.  I may have to start picking against the Steelers.  I am now 83-85 and in 10th place. 



Why Fire a Coach?


This week the Jaguars fired Jack Del Rio, which is something I will never understand.  I get firing a coach after the first few games of the season.  But, why fire someone when your team is 3-8?  What good does this do anyone?

It is not like the Jaguars are going to become a playoff contender after this.  Why not have Del Rio finish out the season and then part ways?  What is the worst thing that can happen?  They finish 3-13?  Or they win out and finish 8-8.

I understand firing a baseball manager mid-season.  Unfortunately, it would not make sense to fire a manager at the beginning of September.

I guess I am just a fan of Jack Del Rio, since he is a beast and he tried hard to fight for coaches wearing suits.

Maybe Penn State should talk to Del Rio.  Linebacker U would continue it's tradition with him...

SOA: The Truth About J.T.

The episode was pretty good.  I feel like this has been spread out over too many episodes though.  They could have honestly cut this down a little bit.  Allow me to explain in a bit.  First, what I liked.



The Good
-When Unser is there with Clay, I thought for sure that he was going to kill him somehow.  Maybe smother him, or just put another bullet in him.

-Tig.  He turned his back on Clay and now blames himself for being shot.  His running down LaRoy's girl was pretty badass.  I loved the chase scene and then the joining of Jax and the others.  I just have on question:  when Jax is shooting at them, did no one else call the police and report a biker gang shooting at SUVs?



-Also, Tig at the hospital was pretty cool.  I felt bad for him.  I wonder how much he knows about JT?

-Gemma finally comes clean with what happened to JT.  Needless to say, Jax is not too happy.  Tara makes herself useful and provides Jax with a method to kill Clay.

-I also loved Opie's disbelief in Jax's promise to do something once he knows the whole truth.  Apparently, Opie is a little tired of these promises.

The Bad
-Gemma's overall plan.  What the hell is she doing?  At first she does not want Clay killed, then she does, then she wants Jax to know.  I get that she had to find the letters and remove the elements that blamed her, but she could have went about everything in a simpler way.

-Tara.  Her whole "tell me you love me" thing was pretty damn weird.  I will have no problem if she takes a bullet.  Also, just like Gemma, what is her plan?  Did she hide the letters that implicate Gemma?  I was confused during that whole exchange.

-Jax's reaction after shooting Opie.  He wants Unser to say it was some black guys.  He then gets pissed at Tig for going after LaRoy.  What the hell did he think would happen?

Predictions
-Lincoln Potter is not kidding when he told Juice that he does not want the club.  He will get the Irish and the cartel, but leave SAMCRO out of it.  Maybe he has some connection to the club...

-Jax will take over the club, and with the IRA/Cartel out of the way, I think he will decide to stay and help push the club back towards what his father envisioned.  Either that, or Tara will die at the end of the season and force Jax to want revenge.

-There will be a war with the Niners.  Will that be the big thing for next season?

walking in a Hyde Park Winter Wonderland...

The countdown has officially begun. The 'C' word can now be be spoken, although with slight apprehension, due to the fact that it has, as always, crept up on me. So to welcome the festivities in style, I decided to jump right in and Christmas it up to the max. Enter Hyde Park's Winter Wonderland. We are talking ice skating, the main man Santa, Angels gorgeous Christmas market, scary ass rides and lots of yummy food, all in gorgeous surroundings. It's free to enter with add-ons for things like ice skating, the observation wheel and the circus...yes, i said circus!










Scream if you wanna go faster!!


Now here comes the food bit...the German's do it best...

Fantasy Football Week Twelve

Kevin's League
I lost to Team Milksteak 105-71.  Thanks Mike Wallace for not trying to score points.  Also, thanks to Drew Brees for putting up 44 points to almost beat me by himself.  What a dickbag...Anyways, this loss dropped me into sixth place with a 6-6 record.  Luckily, I have also clinched the final playoff spot.  I could move up if I win next week, since everyone is 6-6.  I also have scored the lowest amount of points in the league, which is mainly due to the last few weeks.

My best player this week was Percy Harvin, who scored 16 points.  That is pretty sad when your best player only gets 16.  My quarterback situation is seriously messed up, I may need to pick someone up for Freeman.

Steel City League
My sixth win in a row.  I am still in fourth place though.  I beat DC Yinzer 94.74-78.78.  Way to go me! I really do not have a player that did anything amazing.  Pretty much everyone scored what they were supposed to.

I guess I will post a picture of DeMarco Murray.  He had a good week.  Next week I take on one of the bottom teams, so hopefully I will get that 7th win in a row...

Boardwalk Empire: Wife Murdering 101

Allow me to explain something:  if you owe a Jewish butcher $5000, you should probably just pay him.  Jimmy just learned this the hard way.  Manny shows up at Jimmy's house and grabs Angela.  He is holding her hostage while he waits for Jimmy to come out of the bathroom.  As soon as the door opens, Manny shoots, but it is not Jimmy.  It is Angela's girlfriend.  She begs, but Manny still shoots her.

It will be all out war with Philadelphia, but the real question is this:  what will Nucky do when he finds out?  Will he help Jimmy, or will he just stay out of it and not care.  Maybe this could be the thing that helps reconcile their relationship.  Maybe not.

Other awesome things:

-I love the numerous references you can catch if you pay attention.  Like Sacco and Vanzetti in this episode. 
-It was great how Angela and Jimmy had that great moment before she died.  Maybe things were going to get better between them.  Probably not now.
-I wish I had a desk drawer full of Ty Cobb autographed baseballs. 
-I guess sending in the guys with billy-clubs was probably a dumb move on Eli's part.  Also, he is becoming a bit of psychopath.  Nucky should probably have killed him awhile ago.

Peach-Blueberry Pie with Reduced-Fat Pie Crust

There are certain foods I call “white shirt” dishes. These are foods that, like a white shirt, are a can't-go-wrong choice for almost any situation. In my view, a good fresh-baked fruit pie is one of these. Pie has been served by people in all walks of life for centuries, and with good reason: it’s basic, classic, delicious, and will be welcomed practically anywhere food is being served.


Another bonus: despite what you may think if you've never made one, pies are stunningly easy to make, even if you’re working completely from scratch. And even if you’re using a lattice top, simple step-by-step instructions for which are included below.


If all of that seems like a big responsibility for a humble baked good to carry, don’t worry. Pie can handle it, including the one I’m happy to bring to you today: Peach-Blueberry Pie.


A few cook’s notes:


Pie Crust: Use any you like, home-made or purchased, but to reduce the fat content I recommend a reduced-fat version I use on pretty much anything requiring a pie crust. The recipe, which is a slightly jazzed-up version of the one previously posted here under the title, “Impossible Pie Crust,” follows.


Fruit for the Filling: Although I’m not usually a fan of canned ingredients, for recipes like this I don’t at all mind using canned peaches if fresh, juicy ones are not in season. Similar to the reason canned tomatoes are often used in cooking by people who would otherwise never get near a can opener, canned peaches have a more consistent quality than fresh ones. (Just be sure to drain them very well, since they can bring a lot more liquid to your filling than fresh peaches will.) Fresh blueberries, however, are much better to use than the frozen ones. For reasons best left to the chemists to figure out, I’ve found that blueberries tend to toughen up when frozen and thawed.


Tapioca: While it’s possible to thicken with corn starch, using tapioca leaves a cleaner taste. For pie fillings, use instant tapioca; regular tapioca will still thicken but miniature tapioca pearls will be visible. Also, tapioca works best at fairly hot temperatures; I usually bake pies at 350 degrees, but with a tapioca-thickened filling I’ll bake at 425 for a shorter time. Letting your fruit come to room temperature before adding it to the filling also helps the tapioca’s thickening effect.


Thank you, Chef Alex: Credit to Alex Guarnaschelli for the simple but near-genius idea of adding preserves to pie filling.


Enough chit-chat…let’s make some pie! This recipe makes one 9” pie.


First, the low-fat pie crust. Since it’s just as easy to make four crusts as it is to make two, this recipe makes four crusts. (You’ll need two for the Peach-Blueberry pie, and can freeze the other two for up to three months.) Once you have the other two available in the freezer, you’ll think of all kinds of things to do with them!   


Combine 1 cup of apple juice, ½ teaspoon cider vinegar and 2 teaspoons of salt and put into freezer until almost icy.


In a mixing bowl, combine 1-1/2 pounds of all-purpose flour, 8 ounces of cake flour, and 6 tablespoons of sugar. Blend in 16 ounces of firm-textured butter substitute (cut into cubes or chunks) until the mixture resembles a coarse meal with visible pieces of butter substitute.


Add the juice mixture and blend until the dough holds together when pinched.













Divide the dough into four equal parts and wrap each in plastic. Chill two in the refrigerator for one hour, and label and freeze the other two for future use.












Now let’s make our filling!


Preheat the oven to 425.


Blind bake pie shell. (If you’re not familiar with how to do this, fear not; click here for a short tutorial video!)


While shell is blind baking, combine the following filling ingredients: 3-1/2 cups room temperature peaches, pitted, peeled and sliced into wedges; 1 cup room temperature fresh blueberries; 3/4 cup light brown sugar; juice and zest of one lemon; 6 tablespoons instant tapioca; 12 ounces peach preserves; 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract; 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon; 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg; and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Let the mixture rest for 10 – 15 minutes so the tapioca can absorb liquid.


When the bottom crust is ready, put the filling in, using a slotted spoon and draining the each spoonful very well before placing it in the pie shell. (Reserve the liquid for use to glaze the pie later.) Dot with butter substitute. [Ed. Note: When making the pie in the photo, I confess to having forgotten to add the butter substitute. Fortunately, since this was a lattice-top pie, I was able to apply it later.]


Apply solid or lattice top. To make a lattice top:

• Roll out the dough for the top crust large enough to fit over the pie shell. (This is the same as you would do if you were using a solid top.)

• Slice the rolled out dough into strips. (I use about ¾” wide strips, but you can make them however wide you like. Many people make a lattice top with strips 1-1/2” to 2” wide strips.)

• Place an odd number of strips across the top of the filled pie shell. The center strip should go right down the middle of the pie, and the other strips should be spaced evenly on either side of it.

• Fold down every second strip as shown, and lay another strip across the unfolded strips as shown.



• Unfold the folded strips.









• Fold down the strips that weren’t folded the first time and lay a strip across the unfolded strips as shown.





• Repeat until half the pie has a lattice top.











• Working in the opposite direction, form the lattice top for the other half of the pie.









• Using a kitchen scissor, trim the excess length from the strips. (Don’t pull it off by hand, which can overwork the gluten in the dough and make it tough.)


Wet a finger with cold water and rub it along the edges of the crust to make a smooth seal between the top crust and the bottom crust.





(Shown here with the finished edge.)












Place the pie in the oven.












After about 35 minutes, brush the reserved liquid onto the top crust as a glaze, and continue baking until the top is golden brown, about another 10 minutes. (Check the pie periodically during the entire baking time and, if the edges start to brown before the rest of the pie, cover the edges with foil or an aluminum collar.)


Let the pie cool before serving to allow the filling to thicken properly.


All that’s left is to put up a pot of coffee and invite some friends over to share your delicious pie! (Just don’t tell them how easy it is to make.)






Come back next week for another reduced-fat, easy-to-make, home-tested recipe! Till then, stay well, keep it about the food, and always remember to kiss the cook. ;-)

2011 MLB Prediction Results

Let us look at how well I did this season with my predictions: 

NL East
I got the first two correct with the Phillies and Braves.  I also knew the Mets would be better than the Marlins.  Unfortunately, the Nationals had to screw things up by finishing in third.  I was right that Stanton would become an elite power hitter, unfortunately he did not hit 40, so I get no real credit.

NL Central
I did not get one team right.   Pretty damn dumb on my part.  Let us look at how I did with my Pirates against certain pitchers:
Greinke:  3-1 against the Buccos.  So they did at least beat him once.
Halladay:  2-0.  Okay, I was a little off on that one.
Lee:  1-0.  Not looking good.
Lincecum:  Did not even pitch against them.
Zimmerman:  Same as Lincecum.
Bailey:  Homer beat the Buccos, but he gave up three runs.
Gee:  He beat the Pirates twice, and had a great game where he went eight innings of one run ball.
Lohse:  He was 2-1 and did not shut them out either. 

NL West
I at least got the Dodgers correct!  Go me!  I do not think anyone predicted Arizona winning this one, so whatever.  Mat Latos started the season hurt, but did not get hurt during the season.  I also want to point out that the Giants would not have won the division if Posey had been healthy the full year.  Just saying.

I got the wildcard wrong, I got the NLDS completely wrong.  I will point out that I said the NLCS would be between a division champion and a wildcard from within that division (Phillies/Braves) and instead it was the Brewers/Cardinals. 

I did not get any of the awards right, but I did mention Freddie Freeman, who ended up in second place for ROY.  I was also a little under on Troy Tulowitzki's stats, he was just .302/30.  My bad.

I did predict the Pirates record correctly, which is pretty awesome.  I should have entered a contest or something.

AL East
I got three out of the five correct.  If the Red Sox would not have had their monumental collapse, I would have nailed the entire division. Way to go Pirates for ruining that one for me (trust me, I am more than happy being wrong, if it means being at PNC to see the Red Sox lose).  The Yankees finally brought up Montero, and I am pretty sure people will want to see him more often next year instead of Jorge.

AL Central
I only got the Royals right in this one.  Who knew the Indians would be a good team.  Or that the Twins would absolutely suck?  Not this guy.  At least I predicted that Grady Sizemore would get hurt.  Still no word whether or not he is doing softcore porn yet.

AL West
I got the Rangers and the Mariners right.

The only things I got right were the Rangers winning the ALDS over a team and the Royals record. 

Needless to say, this was a bad year for me.

Mishkin's

Thanks to Russell Norman's endless imagination and ambition, Londoner's have another exciting restaurant to feast at. If you are yet to sample this guys style, then you have some good stuff to work through. In a little over 2 years, we have gratefully received Polpo, Polpetto, Spuntino, Da Polpo and now, from TOMORROW, Mishkin's. This new venture is kind of like a New York Jewish deli meets East End caff, but with cocktails! Sounds good, no? And we are talking proper comfort food here...salt beef, meatloaf, duck hash... Feast your eyes on their twitter pics to start the salivation process. Oh, and one more thing. Another new edition to the Norman empire...reservations! Get calling now - 0207 240 2078.

NFL Week Twelve Pick 'Em

7-5 last week.  75-77 on the year.  In 11th place.  I am not thankful for the Bengals and Falcons inability to score another point.  Dickheads.

Happy Thanksgiving!

I hope everyone has a Happy Thanksgiving!  What are you thankful for?  I am thankful for a great girlfriend, family, and friends.  Obviously those are pretty much the same for everyone.  So, I ask you, what is something you are thankful for, that is kind of out there?



Judging by this picture, I would guess the Atom is thankful for the great view of Power Girl's boobs...

SOA: Opie's Revenge or Clay's Downfall

Honestly, the majority of the episode was pretty weak.  I think it was pretty silly for them to bring back
Wendy at this point.  Does Jax really need something else to worry about?  Also, Gemma keeps acting like she has a plan, but what the hell could it be?



The Otto stuff was cool, well played by Sutter, but again, it just felt like filler until we got back to the Opie story.  Finally though, we got what we all wanted:  Opie's revenge.

Opie confronts Jax to find out if he knew anything about Piney's death.  He then shoots out Jax's tire and rides off to confront Clay.  Jax believes it should be brought to the table.  Oh do not worry Jax, Opie is bringing it to the table...

Jax steals a hearse and then some guy's crotch-rocket.  Opie gets to the clubhouse and Clay is waiting for him.  I honestly thought Clay was going to shoot him, but Opie is too smart (or just too pissed).  He smashes through the door and forces Clay to sit down and does not listen to the lies coming from Clay.

Jax shows up and tells Opie that he does not want to have to shoot him.  At this point, I thought that Opie might listen.  Then he shoots Clay twice.  And judging by the previews for next week, Clay dies.

The club is not in a good place right now.  Will Gemma tell Jax the truth about Clay?  Probably not.

Fantasy Football Week Eleven

Kevin's League
Two men enter, both at 5-5, one comes out 6-5 and the other comes out 5-6.  I really thought for sure Offord was going to beat me on Monday, but I lucked out.  I was winning 80-37 going into Monday, but I had Green-Ellis and he had Brady, Welker, and Gronkowski.



Fortunately BJGE decided to actually show up and put up ten points for me.  I beat Offord 90-80.  My best player this week was Josh Freeman, who I almost did not start.  I figured against the Packers he would not do so well and that maybe I should pick up someone to replace Matt Schaub.  Boy, was I wrong.  Freeman scored 21 for me.

This week I take on Team Milksteak, who is in first place and has secured himself a playoff spot.  I beat him last time 128-114.  I hope my team can put up those kind of points again.

Steel City League
I won 124.90-112.14.  Still racking up the points, even with Foster on a bye week.  My big player this week was Nate Washington or Matthew Stafford.  Nate had a few less points, but it was such a nice surprise, since he surpassed his projected stats by 17.

I moved into fourth place and now have a five game winning streak.  Not too shabby for a league that I honestly thought I was out of after the first three weeks.

Fencing For Fun

After the great Penn State win over Ohio State on Saturday, I saw one of my twitter friends from OSU mention that they'd beat us in basketball.  I decided to make a joke about us beating them in fencing.  Before I did that though, I made sure that PSU was still dominant in fencing.  And yeah, they are still the dominant force in the fencing world.

I started looking at the results of fencing matches and had no idea what any of it meant.  After a little research, I came to a conclusion:  I want to fence.  I am being dead serious.

Unfortunately, as I watched some of the fencing matches on YouTube, I came to another conclusion:  it is not at all interesting to watch.  We need to spice it up.



So here is what I want:  form a fencing league.  First, I need a place to hold the matches.  Second, I need equipment.  Third, I need friends.  That is it.  I do not care what the rules are or how the scoring works.  Fuck that noise.

Also, instead of just duking it out in a straight line, I say use a full area.  Maybe even battle outside, use the terrain.  Obviously, every person in the world wants to sword fight.  And we would have to do something about those ridiculous outfits.  All white?  Absolutely not, customize your helmet/mask thing, kind of like goalies.  Plus, each team would have different color uniforms.  Once we go big time, maybe get some sponsors.

I know what you are thinking:  well Josh, how would we get better if no one has any experience?  The answer is easy, trial & error.  If you practice enough, you will get better at it.  How did the first sword fighters become good:  they practiced.  Right?  I think so.

So who is with me on this one?

"Gobble and Squeak": Pan-Fried Thanksgiving Leftovers Patties

Posting a recipe for enormous amounts of turkey, stuffing, sweet potatoes, cranberry sauce, green bean casserole, or some other traditional Thanksgiving food might seem an easy choice only a few days before the big day. However, I realized while planning this week’s recipe post that anyone who’ll be cooking Thanksgiving dinner probably already has their recipes in place and isn’t likely to change them at this late date. So I started thinking about recipes you’d want and, truth be told, the choice wasn’t all that difficult.


THANKSGIVING LEFTOVERS!


There are a lot of directions in which one can take Thanksgiving leftovers: sandwiches, of course. Casseroles, pot pies, and hash are just a few more that come to mind. Today I’m happy to give one of my favorite leftover recipes the Thanksgiving treatment.


I’ve posted on a traditional Bubble and Squeak before. Briefly, it’s a style of cooking that originated in England during World War II, when the British mainland was being hit hard and food shortages made it necessary to make the fullest use of everything they had. One result was made by chopping up whatever meat, potatoes, and vegetables were left over from the previous night’s meal, mixing them together to form a patty, and pan-frying it. Mostly likely as a result of the sound the patties seemed to make in the pan, the dish came to be known as “Bubble and Squeak.”


This week’s recipe takes a similar approach with typical Thanksgiving leftovers: turkey, vegetables, mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, stuffing, and cranberry sauce. Appropriately (I hope), I call it, Gobble and Squeak. And if you don’t have all the ingredients exactly the way they’re described in the recipe, feel free to improvise. This is more of a general method than a recipe calling for precise measurements. (In the photo above, I've served it with a simple Caesar salad on the side.)


So have some fun with this tasty, and just a bit different, way of serving those leftovers.


This recipe makes about 8 burger-size patties.


In a bowl, stir together 1-1/2 cups of leftover vegetables; 1 clove of minced garlic, 2 tablespoons of mustard (I used spicy brown mustard); 2 tablespoons fresh chopped (or 2 teaspoons dried) sage; and 1 tablespoon fresh (or 1 teaspoon dried) tarragon. Let the mixture rest for five minutes while the flavors blend.


Chop 1 pound of turkey into small pieces and mix with the other ingredients in the bowl till combined.



Stir in mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, and stuffing in equal amounts, starting with ½ cup of each and adding more of each in equal amounts until the mixture has a texture that can be formed into patties. (For 1 pound of turkey I used a total of 1 cup of each.) Add salt and pepper to taste.


Optional step: If desired, mix in 2 egg substitute eggs and let the mixture rest in the refrigerator for 15 minutes before forming the patties. (This will make the mixture a little more cohesive while it’s cooking.)


Divide the mixture into 8 burger-size patties.









Coat a large skillet or grille pan with olive oil. Working in batches, cook the patties on both sides till browned. (I cooked mine about 3 minutes per side.)


Serve on a plate or a bun, topped with leftover cranberry sauce and optional cheese, add a salad or favorite side dish, and you've got a delicious meal that's easy to make!


Bonus Recipe: Just in case it turns out you do need a recipe for your Thanksgiving dinner, click here for a delicious Pecan Pie with Cranberries and Bourbon recipe I posted a while back.




Visit again next week for another good-tasting, kitchen-tested recipe using ingredients that are easy to find! Till then, stay well, keep it about the food, and kiss somebody you’re thankful for. After that, always remember to kiss the cook. ;-)