A Nod to the Bluff City.

As that One Hit Wonder, Marc Cohn, once sang...

I'm walking in Memphis
Walking with my feet ten feet off of Beale
Walking in Memphis...

First off, Marc is a lying liar.

No one in Memphis walks anywhere.  And if you do walk, you are met with one of two looks:   Suspect or Pity.

But, for the past eight years I have lived in the city that is proud to call itself "The Birth Place of Rock and Roll."  It's a quirky little city, rich in music, food, and history.  Seersucker and cicada songs in the summer; Christmas trees up immediately following the Thanksgiving meal (they say in the South there are two seasons:  Summer and Christmas); collard greens and fried okra; porch sittin' and story tellin'; and Elvis everywhere. 

And now, I'm going bi-coastal.  If you consider the Mississippi River and Lake Michigan coasts.

While my love affair with Memphis has been a tumultuous one filled with more highs and lows than an episode of Revenge, I have met some of the most delightful, talented, fiercely loyal, and completely insane folks whom I love and cherish with all of my heart.

So on the eve of my pseudo-departure, I offer a tribute to one of Memphis' biggest achievements:  barbecue.

Smoky Mango Barbecue Sauce

Elvis would love this sauce.

On Meatless Mondays, slap some of this on a 'Bello Burger and serve with some grilled asparagus and spicy slaw with jicama.  If'n you like to eat things with a face, try this on grilled salmon or mix it into your turkey burgers.  Delish!

1 cup onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic
1 Tbl fresh rosemary, minced
1/2 tsp dry mustard
1/2 tsp curry powder
2 chipotle peppers, chopped
1 14 oz can fire roasted tomatoes
2 Tbl tomato paste
1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
1/3 cup dark molasses
1/3 cup honey
1 mango, diced
2 Tbl. olive oil

In a medium sauce pan, saute onions and garlic (with just a little bit of salt) in the oil for about 5 minutes or until tender.  Add mustard, curry, and rosemary and cook for about a minute, allowing herbs to bloom.  Add remaining ingredients and bring to a boil.  Reduce heat and simmer for 15 minutes.  Allow to cool slightly and puree until super smooth.  Enjoy.

Spicy Slaw with Jicama

Sexy Elvis loves jicama.

For those of you who are unfamiliar with jicama, it is God’s little joke of the vegetable world. Imagine the illegitimate love child of an apple and a potato. It is sweet and crunchy and absolutely delish!

½ head of green cabbage, shredded
½ head of red cabbage, shredded
3 carrots, grated
1 red pepper, julienned
1 cup jicama, julienned.
½ cup corn
½ cup black beans
½ cup fresh cilantro, chopped

Spicy Vinaigrette (recipe follows)

Place ingredients in a large mixing bowl and toss with Spicy Vinaigrette. Allow to sit for a couple of hours so flavors can marry.


Spicy Vinaigrette

2 garlic cloves
zest and juice of 1 lime
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
1 Tbl Dijon mustard
3/4 cup olive oil
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground coriander
just shy of 1 tsp of cayenne pepper
1 tsp pomegranate molasses
2 tsp fresh cilantro, chopped
pinch salt

In a small food processor, combine all ingredients except olive oil until garlic and cilantro has been good and mashed up. With the motor running, slowly add oil. Spicy and delish!

Scott's Three Way

I want to be The Next Food Network Star.

It would be the perfect combination of all of my interests: food, education, and performing. I have dreams of going to work at the Food Network Studios in Chelsea Market, shooting an episode or twelve in a day, then dashing off to a show with J where I would graciously autograph a copy of my memoirs/cookbook mysteriously pulled from a Midwestern housewife's designer knock-off bag bought from a street vendor. Move over, Aunt Sandy. Scotty D has arrived!

I have actually begun the arduous process of completing the rather lengthy application. Along with providing your original recipes and describing what ingredient best personifies you, they ask you to come up with two or three concepts for your show, should you win. The Improvised Chef is, natch, number one: a delightful, half hour romp through your pantry making delicious food and having a few laughs along the way. My other concept is Scott's Three Way, which offers up three different tasty recipes/preparations focusing around one ingredient. While the double entendre of the title may prove to be too PG-13 for the middle and lower parts of the country, it's a darn good idea and completely suitable for Blogland.

So using the ingredients from the last blog (Mom's Barbecue Sauce, Grilled Salmon, and Peaches). I offer up two additional recipes. Let me know if you like 'em!

Barbecue Gravlax

This takes some time, but it's well worth the effort.

2 lbs. salmon
1 cup Mom's Barbecue Sauce
1 cup kosher salt

Combine salt and BBQ sauce in a bowl, and gird your loins. We are preparing to slather that fish with the stuff and wrap it in plastic wrap. Line a casserole dish with plastic wrap and pour half in half of the mixture. Place salmon skin side down in the dish and pour the remaining sauce on top. Wrap up tightly, place a smaller dish on top to weigh it down, and refrigerate for at least 24 hours, 36 hours is preferred. Basically, you are mashing the salmon allowing the salt to "cook" it. I use a crepe pan and bottled water.

Remove salmon from plastic wrap and discard the goo. Rinse salmon under cold water to get rid of all of the excess salt and sauce. Pat dry. Using a serrated knife, slice salmon into thin strips working with the grain of the fish. Serve with rye bread and Peach and Red Onion Chutney.

Grilled Peach and Red Onion Chutney

Make the Grilled Peach and Red Onions (see previous post), and throw it in a food processor. Add a couple additional splashes of tarragon vinegar and, presto, you've got chutney!

Grilled Salmon Flatbread Pizza

8 oz salmon
4 oz prosciutto
1/2 red onion, sliced into rings
1/4 cup smoked Gouda, grated
4 Tbl Mom's Barbecue Sauce (divided)
2 pieces of Flat Out Flatbread (preferably the sun dried tomato variety)
salt/pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 400. Place flatbread on a baking sheet and lightly drizzle with olive oil. Flip them over and wiggle them around on the sheet to remove excess oil. Flip 'em back over, sprinkle with a little bit of salt, and pop in the oven for about 7 minutes or until lightly browned. Remove from oven and flip placing salted side down. Set aside to cool (this helps crisp up the bread).

While bread toasts, slice prosciutto into ribbons and crisp up in a saute pan. Remove and drain on paper towels.

Heat grill pan over medium high flame. Drizzle salmon and onions with olive oil, salt and pepper. Place salmon on grill skin side down for 7 minutes. Flip salmon, cook for an additional 5 minutes and throw them onions on the grill! Remove from grill. Flake salmon with a fork into sizable, yet still bite sized pieces.

To assemble pizzas, spread barbecue sauce on flatbread. Layer salmon, onions, and prosciutto. Top with cheese. Place in oven and cook until cheese has melted.

Serve with a salad of arugula or spinach, peach slices, red onions, and a touch of blue cheese.

Mom's Barbecue Sauce

Growing up in St. Louis, I could always tell when summer had officially arrived. Yes, school was out. Yes, I would ride my bike to swim practice every morning at the crack of dawn. And, yes, Grease 2 was playing on HBO on indefinite repeat. But, for me, the beginning summer was marked when, in our refrigerator, an old Peter Pan Peanut Butter jar with a red lid appeared filled to the rim with Carl's Barbecue Sauce.

My entire childhood existence was set in suburban St. Louis, save for a brief stint in Connecticut. As is often the case with the youngest child, it is difficult to imagine that my family had a life before I had blessed them with my birth. Much to my surprise, there were a host of experiences in exotic locales such as Orlando, FL or Laredo, TX that I would never know. It was in Orlando (I believe) where my parents became great friends with another couple, Carl and Sandy. As most young couples do, they spent time together socializing, planning dinner parties, and making wonderful 60s dishes like tomato aspic, rumaki, and fondue. It was during this time that Carl developed his barbecue sauce recipe.

A couple of years ago, I was visiting my mother (who still lives in the house of my childhood) and asked if we could make it. This recipe is one of the most ridiculous things you have ever seen. It has about 40 different ingredients and a few bizarre measuring techniques. But, it creates one of the most deliciously tangy and sweet sauces, and it was the taste sensation of my youth. At the end of my visit, Mom wrote out the recipe on an index card and slipped it into my bag. It now resides inside a cookbook in my kitchen, stained, well worn, and full of reminiscence.

Although the recipe may be Carl's, it will always remind me of Mom.

Mom's Barbecue Sauce

1 Tbl Tabasco
1 Tbl liquid smoke
2 Tbl lemon juice
2 Tbl olive oil
1 Tble horseradish
3/4 cider vinegar
1 1/2 cup brown sugar
1 1/2 tsp chili powder
1 tsp ground black pepper
1 tsp celery seed
1 tsp curry powder
1/2 tsp white pepper
dash of crumbled rosemary
1/2 tsp dried tarragon
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1 pkg Onion soup mix
16 oz tomato sauce
3 chipotle peppers in adobo, chopped (this was my addition - optional)
1 stick of butter (my mom called it "oleo"...isn't that cute!)
2 cups of water.
3 Tbl cornstarch

Basically bring all of this to a simmer and add in the cornstarch. Cook until thick. If using the peppers, blend until smooth before adding cornstarch.

This is fantastic on grilled salmon! Serve with grilled asparagus and Grilled Peaches and Red Onions.

Grilled Peaches and Red Onions

6 peaches, cut into slices
1 red onion, cut into 1/2" rounds
1/2 cup fresh orange juice
1 1/2 Tbl fresh tarragon leaves
1 clove garlic
2 Tbl rice wine vinegar
3/4 cup olive oil
salt and pepper to taste

Preheat grill pan or outdoor grill over medium/high heat. Brush grill lightly with oil to prevent sticking. Working in batches, place peaches and onions on grill, cooking just long enough to get grill marks. Set aside in a bowl to cool.

In a small saucepan, bring OJ to a boil. Lower temperature and simmer until reduced by half. Set aside to cool. Once cooled, combine with tarragon, garlic, vinegar in a small food processor until good and mashed up. With the motor running, drizzle in olive oil. Pour over peaches, add salt and pepper to taste.

Great as a side or combined with arugula as a salad.