... from Desert Island Foods™.com. I hope whatever you're grilling, it's got Survival Spice™ on it!

Do you know what you're cooking today? If you'd like to email me your food pics, I'd be glad to post them. No idea what we're having here, it's only going to be 109º today, brrrrr..... I'll have to run to the market and make something up. That's the best way to throw a menu together anyway, I think.

Happy Fourth! See you Monday.

Here's a great letter from Fran in Texas, who happened to place an order during one of our not-so-secret newsletter specials. As a reminder, you can see our newsletter archive here.

Scott, I must say that coming home from work today was like Christmas in February. I had not only gotten the 6-pack of Survival Spice I'd ordered, but you enclosed an EXTRA 6-pack! Wow!!

I had ordered 2 tins a little while back, and was so crazy over it that I decided to be generous with the 2nd tin and I gave it to my sister for her birthday. I didn't really want to send it, it was a totally magnanimous gesture on my part, to give up that second tin!! ( I was hoping I wouldn't run out before I was able to order more!)

Now she is crazy over Survival Spice, too. I had plans today for broiled lamb chops for dinner~~well, I made them, and I can't get enough S-S, so I used it as a dip for my lamb chops when they were done broiling. Sheer ambrosia! I use it on scrambled eggs, hard boiled eggs, meat, salad, baked potatoes, well, really, ANYthing.

I don't like Bloody Marys, or else I'd have tried it in that, too. Maybe I should, I might find that I just DO like Bloody Marys, as long as S-S was one of the components. I'll let you know if I try that.

Anyway, Scott, thank you for your kind and most generous gift. I have big plans for S-S as gifts throughout the year, and am thinking of making it a featured item in the family gift-giving at Christmastime, I believe in planning ahead. Especially when I come across something as good as Survival Spice.

There is an old saying, 'Every day in every way, I am getting better and better'. I have to say that with Survival Spice, you've got the very best. Keep up the great work, and I totally understand that one letter on your website when the person stuck his/her tongue in the tin, I haven't done that, but I sure do dip spoons into it! Yum!! Nice controlled heat, and the little cracked peppercorns explode in your mouth like tiny sparklers.

I DO plan to give a tin to the head chef at the golf course that I work at on the weekends. Let's see what he might do with it~~

Thanks again,
Fran

For me, risotto is a very romantic dish, which is why I made it for our anniversary last week. Not a lot of ingredients are necessary to make a great risotto- this included lots of roasted shallots, homemade chicken broth, thyme, a few peas, and a generous amount of grated parm and a splash of Tibvrtini Novello Extra Virgene once it was off the heat.

For more on my classic risotto technique, see the post here, this version definitely had more ingredients in it, but simple is just as good, really.

Sadly, that was the last of my chicken stock. Time to roast a few chickens to make more, I reckon...

Sorry for the long absence, a combination of burnout, being crazy busy with work and life, and a death in the family just made it impossible to focus on new site content for a while. It's important to me to get back at it, and publicly challenging myself to post every weekday seems like a great way to keep the pressure on to write.

Here's a promise- I'll post something every day Monday to Friday for the rest of the year, and if you're one of the first 10 people to "bust me" in the comments for skipping a day, I'll give you a tin of Survival Spice®. Simple as that.

Uh, speaking of Survival Spice®, I hope you have enough for the Fourth of July!

I wrote about Alinea before, when it first opened. Apparently Chef Grant Achatz has tongue cancer, which obviously is like an painter losing their eyesight. His innovative cuisine has put him at the top of the food world, and hopefully the treatment he's receiving can save his life, as well as his tongue.

Thoughts and prayers go out to Grant and his family, you can read a great article about Grant and his battle at The New Yorker.

Please take a few minutes to remember what this day is about.

P.S. Rubbed with just Survival Spice®, smoked/grilled over pecan wood. And yes, so good I got a little weepy.

Illinois State Police Sgt. Brian Mahoney says the truck's driver was traveling from Chicago to Morris on Interstate 80 around 4 a.m. Monday when he fell asleep at the wheel and slammed into the median.

"The boxes came out of the trailer and boxes were ripped open," he said.

There were no injuries that I'm aware of, just a lot of bloated drivers stuffed full of tasty sugary goodness.

And speaking of barbecue season, have you ordered enough Survival Spice® to get you through yours?

I thought not...

We are about to enter the summer soon and BBQ season.
Therefore it is important to refresh your memory on the etiquette of this
sublime outdoor cooking activity, as it's the only type of cooking a 'real' man will do,
probably because there is an element of danger involved. 

When a man volunteers to do the BBQ the following chain of events are put into motion: 

Routine... 
(1) The woman buys the food. 
(2) The woman makes the salad, prepares the vegetables, and makes dessert. 
(3) The woman prepares the meat for cooking, places it on a tray along with the necessary
cooking utensils and sauces, and takes it to the man who is lounging beside the grill - beer in hand. 

Here comes the important part: 
(4) THE MAN PLACES THE MEAT ON THE GRILL. 

More routine.... 
(5) The woman goes inside to organize the plates and cutlery. 
(6) The woman comes out to tell the man that the meat is burning.
 He thanks her and asks if she will bring another beer while he deals with the situation.  

Important again: 
(7) THE MAN TAKES THE MEAT OFF THE GRILL AND HANDS IT TO THE WOMAN. 

More routine.... 
(8) The woman prepares the plates, salad, bread, utensils, napkins, sauces, and brings them to the table.
(9) After eating, the woman clears the table and does the dishes. 

And most important of all: 
(10) Everyone PRAISES the MAN and THANKS HIM for his cooking efforts. 
(11) The man asks the woman how she enjoyed 'her night off.' And, upon seeing her annoyed reaction, concludes that there's just no pleasing some women.... 

We've had a terrific response to our last newsletter, thanks to everyone who's ordered so far.

This week's Friday Funny comes from Kathleen, who can forward a good joke faster than anyone I've ever known!

Have a great weekend! Thanks so much for your support of Desert Island Foods®.com.

A little girl asked her mother, 'How did the human race appear?'
 
The mother answered, 'God made Adam and Eve and they had children and so was all mankind made.'
 
Two days later the girl asked her father the same question.
 
The father answered, 'Many years ago there were monkeys from which the human race evolved.'
 
The confused girl returned to her mother and said, 'Mom how is it possible that you told me the human race was created by God, and Dad said they developed from monkeys?'
 
The Mother answered, 'Well, dear, it is very simple. I told you about my side of the family and your father told you about his.

Thanks to Bob for the link.

The latest DIF newsletter is here, check out our Ultimate Oil and Vinegar sale!

Thanks for reading, have a great weekend. Cook something good, willya?

A man feared his wife wasn't hearing as well as she used to and he thought she might need a hearing aid. Not quite sure how to approach her, he called the family Doctor to discuss the problem.

The Doctor told him there is a simple informal test the husband could perform to give the Doctor a better idea about her hearing loss.

Here's what you do,' said the Doctor, 'stand about 40 feet away from her, and in a normal conversational speaking tone see if she hears you.
If not, go to 30 feet, then 20 feet, and so on until you get a response.'

That evening, the wife is in the kitchen cooking dinner, and he was in the den. He says to himself, 'I'm about 40 feet away, let's see what happens.' Then in a normal tone he asks, 'Honey, what's for dinner?'

No response.

So the husband moves closer to the kitchen, about 30 feet from his wife and repeats, 'Honey, what's for dinner?'

Still no response.

Next he moves into the dining room where he is about 20 feet from his wife and asks, 'Honey, what's for dinner?'

Again he gets no response. So, he walks up to the kitchen door, about 10 feet away. 'Honey, what's for dinner?' Again there is no response.

So he walks right up behind her. 'Honey, what's for dinner?'

'Ralph , for the FIFTH F*#@*n' time, CHICKEN!'

We've had my Mom and stepdad in town for the last few weeks, and as a belated birthday gift I made my Mom some chocolate chip cookies to take back to the Midwest with them.

Didja have to take all of them, Mom?

And yes, they were good, especially right out of the oven with a glass of milk.

UPDATE: Thanks for the link, Gail!

Basically, you can tweak the recipe on a chocolate chip package, and add a little extra baking soda. Take the time to mix these by hand- first cream the butter and sugars together, then add the eggs and vanilla. Stir in the salt and baking soda, then add the rest of the ingredients. Taste the batter before you portion them, there should be just enough salt to increase the succulence of the batter without it actually tasting salty.

Use parchment paper!

A really nice salmon fillet, rubbed with our Survival Spice® barbecue rub and a bit of Tibvrtini Olio Extra Virgene di Oliva. Something about this image was just really interesting to me. To you, who knows?

Have a great weekend, and please buy some of our great products!!!!!!!!!

I'm trying to get a newsletter out, but until I have a chance- buy some Desert Island Foods®.com stuff, willya?

'Preciate it.

Walmart announced that, sometime in 2008, it will begin offering customers a new discount item ---- Walmart's own brand of wine.  The world's largest retail chain is teaming up with Ernest & Julio Gallo Winery of California to produce the spirits at an affordable price, in the $2 - $5 range.



Wine connoisseurs may not be inclined to put a bottle of Walmart brand into their shopping carts, but "there is a market for inexpensive wine," said Kathy Micken, professor of marketing at the University of Arkansas.
 


"But the right name is important ."
 


Customer surveys were conducted to determine the most attractive name for the Walmart wine brand.  The top surveyed names in order of popularity were:
 

10. Chateau Traileur Parc
 
9. White Trashfindel
 
8. Big Red Gulp
 
7. World Championship Riesling
 
6. NASCARbernet
 
5. Chef Boyardeaux
 
4. Peanut Noir
 
3. I Can't Believe it's not Vinegar
 
2. Grape Expectations
 
1. Nasti Spumante
 


The beauty of Walmart wine is that it can be served with either white meat (Possum) or red meat (Squirrel).